Niels Albert
Zonnebeke, Belgium
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Niels Albert won two elite cyclocross World Championships, first in 2009 and again in 2012 with a solo victory in Koksijde, establishing himself as one of the most dominant riders of his generation during a career that ended well before it might otherwise have run its course. Doctors discovered scar tissue on Albert's heart caused by a prior infection, producing an arrhythmia that could plausibly trigger a heart attack during the kind of sustained, elevated-heart-rate effort cyclocross racing demands, and he later had a defibrillator implanted to manage the condition. On May 19, 2014, at age 28, Albert tearfully announced his retirement from professional cycling, ending his competitive career less than two years removed from his second world title. His combination of two elite World Championship titles and a career cut short at 28 by a genuine cardiac health risk has made Albert one of the most respected and sympathetically remembered riders of his cyclocross generation.
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- Top 6 Cyclocross Riders of All Time
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