Michael Barry

Ready for the start of the '06 season (http://team.discovery.com/meet/meet.html )

A hero has to be willing to give 110% for the team and leave nothing for himself. A hero has to be determined and have perseverance. A hero has to be humble and modest. A hero has to be able to come back from injury again and again, stronger than before.

Michael Barry was born December 18, 1975 to working parents in Toronto, Ontario. His father soon passed on his love for cycling by entering him in races and by immersing him in the cycling culture at a very young age. Michael quickly excelled in his newfound sport, but he didn't stop there. In high school at Upper Canada College, he became an excellent cross country runner and skier while continuing to pursue his cycling career. Entering university at the University of Toronto, Michael was already on the Ontario provincial cycling team and the Canadian national cycling team. In 1994, Michael represented his home country at the Commonwealth Games in Victoria, where he competed in several track events.

Michael racing to the finish in '05 (http://www.michaelbarry.ca/)

During 1995 and 1996, his career took off as he signed with the French team Velo Club Annemasse and raced in the Atlanta Olympics. He also placed 8th in the U23 Road race at the world championships in Lugano, Switzerland. He returned to the Velo Club Annemasse, and in 1998 signed with the now-disbanded Saturn Racing Team, enjoying several successful seasons with them. In 2002, he was brought aboard the dominant U.S. based cycling team, U.S. Postal. He rode with them until the team changed name and became the Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team whom he is currently racing for.

Michael Barry has risen to the top of his sport by training hard, and without the aid of performance enhancing drugs; achieving great results each year despite injury and working for his teammates. Michael also has developed a stellar reputation throughout the years. His stellar reputation can be attributed to his qualities of being a selfless teammate, humble rider, and hard worker. He exhibits these qualities in every race that he participates in, but they were clearly shown when he rode in support of his team by shielding captain Roberto Heras from the wind in the past several Vuelta a Espana's and other races throughout Europe.

Michael Barry riding the 06 Tour of California (http://www.michaelbarry.ca/)

Michael Barry is my hero because he is the perfect team player and gives everything for the good of the team. He is widely respected throughout the cycling community as a super domestique. A domestique is someone in cycling who does all the hard work in a race so that the team leader won't have to do as much work and will be able to win the race. "I have always felt that being part of a winning team effort is better than a solo victory, because you have teammates to share the experience with," said Barry. It is this selfless sacrifice that makes Michael such a great cyclist, a great person, and a true hero.

Road rash from the 2006 Tour of Flanders (http://www.thepaceline.com/members/staff_report_item.aspx?cid=2159)

His determination is amazing as season after season he has had to overcome horrific injuries from crashes to come back and ride in support of his teammates. For example during the 2002 Vuelta a Espana, Michael suffered a truly horrific crash. He was involved in a 5 rider pile-up on a mountain descent, and hit the pavement at 37 mph. That wasn't the least of his worries though, one of the motor bikes filming the race ended up getting caught up in the crash. Michael was trapped underneath the half-ton motorcycle's front wheel and was dragged along until the motorcycle finally ground to a halt 30 meters farther down the mountain. The motorcycle was still resting on his chest. A normal person would have given up after a wreck like that, but not Michael. Even now, he is recovering from a horrific injury he sustained in the 2006 Tour of Flanders in which he damaged 3 vertebrae and received road rash on much of his body and face. Yet, less than three weeks after the incident, he is already back on the bike training to support his teammates in the later part of the season.

Michael Barry is also one of the most humble men in the entire pro peloton, never boasting or bragging, and letting his racing speak for itself. "I realize, too, that what is most admirable is not a rider's palmares, or results, but his qualities as a cyclist," said Barry in his book, Inside the Postal Bus. It is this kind of attitude that has made him one of the most well-liked and respected riders in the pro peloton. These are all the qualities of a hero, and the reason why Michael Barry is my hero.