“The closest I have come to death was when I had my crash at the Blois ...” — Eddy Merckx Quote

“The closest I have come to death was when I had my crash at the Blois outdoor velodrome in central France in September 1969.”

“I don't like it when people say I was the best ever. It's silly. I am not the best ever. I was the best of my time.”

“I can tell you I preferred my era. Yes, they make much more money now but I preferred my cycling. The passion for racing. I like more racing. Now riders they train all the time. Not so much racing.”

“My closest friends are from my high school days.”

“I told my mom for years that I wanted to be a manicurist, and she'd always be like, 'But what if you went to college and you got a degree?' She'd try to explain how I could actually do a thing that would make me a ton of money, or that I didn't have to just pick the business that was closest to our house.”

“I write about presidents. That means I write about guys - so far. I'm interested in the people closest to them, the people they love and the people they've lost... I don't want to limit it to what they did in the office, but what happens at home and in their interactions with other people.”