Gallery: The long legacy of Tony Martin
Gallery: The long legacy of Tony Martin
Tony Martin’s Wednesday marked a couple of big milestones. For one, it was the last day of his professional cycling career. For another, it was his last win.
Over 14 years at the sport’s highest level – plus a couple as a Continental-level rider before that – the big German rider morphed from a time trial powerhouse to one of the sport’s great road captains.
His opening four years at the High Road/HTC/Columbia outfit saw him steadily improving, before his breakthrough season in 2011 which saw him claim his first Individual Time Trial World Championship, his first two Grand Tour stage wins, and the GC win at Paris-Nice.
That season precipitated a move to Quick Step for five years – a team at which he picked up his next three ITT World Champion jerseys, four Tour de France stage wins, and wore the yellow jersey for two stages at the 2015 edition of the race.
Two years at Katusha-Alpecin followed – a relatively lean period for Martin that nonetheless included successive national time trial championships – before he moved to Jumbo-Visma in 2019. Although his powers were beginning to wane against younger, more dynamic rivals, Martin repurposed his enormous engine to be a super domestique and road captain. There, the tall German was a regular sight at the front of the peloton, reeling in the day’s breakaway with a calm, nonchalant air of inevitability.
Even when he wasn’t winning, Martin was omnipresent, and if not riding as a star in his own right, he was the consummate team player. The last year of his career saw him make global headlines at the Tour de France – it was Martin that ploughed first into the infamous ‘Omi Opi’ sign – before he returned to form to claim a fairytale last rainbow jersey in the mixed relay time trial.
In total, he ends his career with 67 victories – 50 of them in time trials. He rode 21 Grand Tours (including 13 Tours de France), won four individual time trial world championships, four team time trial world championships, an Olympic silver medal, took seven individual Grand Tour stage wins, and 10 national time trial championships.
Here is a selection of the ups and downs from a career that left a mark.
So long, Tony, and thanks for the memories.
In 2011, Tony Martin won his first World ITT Championship with enough time up his sleeve to sit up and salute across the line. It was a result that left him secure enough to finally step away from his job as a police officer. 
In 2012, he was back at it, showing his delight with a slightly more ambiguous gesture. 
Three in a row at the 2013 Worlds in Florence, finishing ahead of Bradley Wiggins and Fabian “We Know Where The Fingers Are” Cancellara. 
A bunch of bicyclists strike a natural, spontaneous pose at the Dubai Tour, 2014.
Tony Martin comes close to stealing the show with an all-grey tracksuit ensemble, but is pipped at the last minute by a barefoot, boardshorted Mark Cavendish. Joaquim Rodriguez is jetlagged to oblivion.
Supertucking to a stirring stage win at the 2014 Tour de France.
One of Martin’s greatest career highlights came on stage 4 of the 2015 Tour de France, when – riding teammate Matteo Trentin’s bike, following a mechanical incident – he escaped 3km from the line… 
… and held on for the stage win, and first yellow jersey of his career. 
Look at him go! I reckon this Tour’s going to go just great. 
Spoke too soon. On stage 6 into Le Havre, Martin went down in the final kilometre, breaking a collarbone. 
Teamwork, as the saying goes, makes the dream work. But this dream could not be salvaged. 
His Etixx-Quick Step squad helped him to the line, but x-rays after the stage put an end to Martin’s Tour. 
“Look, Tony, I know this is going to be an emotional press conference and you’re gutted to be leaving the race and in considerable physical and psychological turmoil, but please do us a favour and ensure that a delicious, nutritious, and sponsor-correct Etixx energy bar (#FuelYourGoal) is prominently placed in frame? Thanks m8, cheers.” – Team Media Spokesperson, moments before this photo. 
Tony Martin left it all on the line at the Richmond, Virginia World Championships. He didn’t come away with a spot on the podium, but courtesy of his infamous sandpapered saddle, he had some other mementoes. 
An excellent entry into the Tom Boonen photo archive – here’s Etixx-Quick Step riders Tony Martin and Tom Boonen unveiling the arrival of supermarket chain Lidl as a sponsor.
It’s the clumsy cable ties on Boonen’s basket that do it for me.
Mark Cavendish has a schoolboy tie. Greg Van Avermaet has a dashingly Euro big-scarf/blazer combo. Tony Martin has a text message. 
At the 2016 Tour de France, Tony Martin and young up-and-comer Julian Alaphilippe (keep an eye on that kid, I have a good feeling about him) went on a two-person raid that held off the peloton for more than 170 km.
It didn’t pan out…
… but, for the first time ever, saw two people awarded the day’s combativity prize. 
From one famous cycling destination to another, here’s Martin on his way to a fourth and final Time Trial World Championship in Doha, 2016. 
AND he got a cake.
I’m not so sure about thosemacaronspetit choux, just quietly.
For 2017, Martin made a big move to the immaculately-attired Katusha–Alpecin. 
It wasn’t all giggles in golf buggies, though. Here’s a lean, knackered looking German warming down after stage 10 of the 2017 Tour de France. 
Later that Tour, he reached for the sandpaper saddle again. As this very nice picture shows. 
Martin was a force on a time trial bike, but he was increasingly valuable as a teammate, too. Here he makes his way to the front of the pack at the 2018 Tour of Flanders – which, to be clear, Katusha-Alpecin did absolutely nothing in, but that’s not Martin’s fault. They just weren’t that good a team. 
No, I don’t know what on earth is going on here either. Yes, I like it.
I think.
Having fled the Victory Desert of Katusha-Alpecin, Martin landed on his feet joining Jumbo Visma for the 2019 season, where he could strike a casual pose in a different kit. 
He was crucial to the team scoring a stage win at the Team Time Trial early in that year’s Tour de France (and then got disqualified for some mid-level argy-bargy late in the race, but I don’t have a picture of that, so here we are.) 
It was, it seemed, a good move for him. At the 2019 Vuelta a España, he was part of a team that expertly guided Primoz Roglic toward his first Grand Tour win. 
But, alas, Martin wouldn’t get to stand on the podium in Madrid. He crashed out in a rather grisly fashion on stage 19. 
A few months later, though, he was back in fighting shape. At the Jumbo-Visma 2020 season launch, he even managed to look convincingly excited recording one of those awkward little promotional gif things. 
I call this one “toot toot, all aboard, captain!” 
Pushing the pace at the 2021 Criterium du Dauphine Libere, leaving the rest of the peloton in his shadow (or, the tunnel’s, anyway). 
Tony Martin starts his last German ITT championship – a race that he would win for a 10th time. 
The familiar sight of Tony Martin at the front of a strung out peloton (Tour of Britain, 2021). 
On the weekend, Martin missed out on the medals in his final World ITT championship, finishing sixth. 
But he had one race to ride – the mixed relay. For a fairytale ending, the German team took the win. Here’s Martin (left), Max Walscheid (middle) and Nikias Arndt (right) at the moment they knew. 
Now there’s a guy who looks happy to have finished his cycling career. 
The German National Teammates showing off their medals – and Tony Martin’s eighth rainbow jersey (four of which were solo). 
At his final press conference, a reflective Martin spoke about his reasons for stepping away from the sport – “I just didn’t feel safe anymore, to be honest. Racing was not really fun anymore for me … This year I was lying in the ambulance en route to hospital full of blood and full of pain. I’m 36 and a dad to two daughters … I told myself to stop before something serious happens to me” – his plans to pull some mementoes out of the basement and redecorate his house, and his satisfaction at closing out on top. “From A to Z, it’s perfect,” he said.