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I sat next to Axel Merckx on a flight between Rome and Olbia (Sardinia) in 2007. The plane was full of Giro riders. We had a long talk about life, family, and retirement. He was retiring after that season, he said it was a good time to go. Their designated team leader, Hontschar, was not riding due to blood "problems", so they were basically looking for stages but didn't have any riders for that either. Merckx was the road captain and could see the writing on the wall. The team was disbanded by fall. He's made a nice transition as team director for development teams. It doesn't hurt to have a good last name as well. I saw him again about a year later and he remembered me by name.
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