"The heart rate was higher than the average watts. You start thinking if everything is going to be well again"
I interview Gregor Mühlberger to talk about his journey with Movistar and how he overcame the meningitis that made him question his future in the peloton.
During the past week at Itzulia, I had the opportunity to chat with Gregor Mühlberger, rider for the Movistar Team. The two-time Austrian champion gave an interview to Cycling Report in which he reflects on his time with Movistar, his role within the team, how cycling has evolved over the years and his radical nutritional shift.
Relaxed and confident in his place within the squad, Mühlberger is one of the most experienced domestiques in a team with a traditionally Latin American identity and few Central European riders. He shares his thoughts on the present with an insightful look at both past and future.
Javier Aguilar - Gregor, after nearly five years at Movistar, what would be the general assessment of your seasons here?
Gregor Mühlberger - Well, I am actually quite, quite proud of the team and myself. Especially the first year was hard with having meningitis in April, already. You come to a new team and you want to prove why you are here, what are you capable of and then this first season here hit me pretty hard. The team, especially the management and the guys here, stood behind me and supported me the best way possible. It was just a pleasure riding with them until now. And I'm quite happy with everything, how it's going and trying to support my leaders as good as possible.
JA - After two years with hardly any results, you took a stage win at the Tour of the Alps. You said it was the most emotional win in your career.
GM- I had meningitis and afterwards it was pretty hard to keep everything going again. When I left the hospital I was still... It's like when I moved I was so tired all the time and I started to walk little by little for 10-15 minutes, but this 10-15 minute walks was all in all about 150-200 meters so at this point you start thinking if everything is going to be well again and if the body recovers.
After five weeks I went on the bike again. It was quite quite impressive because the heart rate was higher than the average watts and at this point I was thinking if the body can recover and I could still be one of one of the best riders in the peloton, as I was before in 2019 and 2020.
To win in Tour of the Alps, which was quite a hard stage, was kind of a relief that I was still able to win.
“When I left the hospital I was so tired all the time and I started to walk little by little for 10-15 minutes, but this 10-15 minute walks was all in all about 150-200 meters so at this point you start thinking if everything is going to be well again”
Gregor Mühlberger after suffering meningitis in 2021
JA- Tell me how you felt the evolution of the team within these five years. I mean, modernization, technology, data. How did you experience all that? Because all teams are working hard in that area.
GM- We as riders experience maybe less what's going on behind. Our staff, head coaches and performance guys are working so hard to figure it out what's the best, what's the fastest, how do we get there and we trust them to 200%.
For sure we are talking to them but these are the guys who know everything because they are specialists in nutrition, in performance… so these are the guys we trust.
JA- In terms of watts have you experienced, like many of the guys in the peloton say, that your numbers are much better than four or five years ago?
GM- Yes, luckily [laughs]. But if they are not better, you're super fast in the back again. So we all get better. But nutrition was, I think, the biggest part in the last five years. Nutrition and aerodynamics, that changed a lot.
It's how the time passes. You always have to try to be on the top... It's not only in our sport, it's everywhere. Also not only in sports. You always have to keep improving and trying to be on the top, because otherwise it's pretty fast that you're done there.
JA- Related to that, I heard that you changed your nutrition, towards a gluten-free diet.
GM- The nutritionist came up and we were talking about my allergies because they hit me pretty hard the last years especially in April, beginning of May, end of March. I had really big problems with the allergies always and getting sick. I couldn't recover pretty well after the races, so the nutritionist came up and told me to try to become gluten-free and I thought we could try it of course, but I didn’t know how it should work.
I'm not celiac and I never had problems with my stomach. I thought we could do it, no problem, but I didn’t know if there was really a change. Actually it really helped me for my immune system. Now with the allergies I have to say I still feel it right now, at the moment, but way less and my immune system is way better especially after racing and training in these periods when you get cold again. I have the feeling that I recover faster now.
JA- So you will maintain that diet.
GM- Of course, yeah.
“I had really big problems with the allergies always. I couldn't recover pretty well after the races, so the nutritionist came up and told me to try to become gluten-free”
Gregor Mühlberger on his nutritional shift
JA- You made two impressive Strade Bianche [10th in 2018, 11th in 2020] before coming to Movistar… But you didn't race in Strade with your nowadays team in these 5 year. Why?
GM- Oh, because we have maybe stronger riders for Strade in this team than in Bora [laughing]. It was about the progression and how we keep everything going until the Tour de France. Normally in Bora I was on altitude and straight to Strade Bianche, which was always nice for me there.
I wanted also to race here with this team Strade but unfortunately we had some good planning going on for the upcoming races or for the goals for the season and Strade didn't suit in so we managed it otherwise. But it's an amazing race.
JA- What about future? You’re in the final year of your contract, are you in talks with the team?
GM- Right now not, but I hope to be there soon. I would love to stay. I think we have a pretty good time here, especially the last races. Catalunya showed that we suit pretty good together, I'm really happy and I hope the staff as well. Let's see how things go, but I hope to stay.
Remember, you can follow Cycling Report on Twitter, Instagram, or Bluesky, as well as on my personal account.
The best way to support the project is to share the content if you enjoyed it!