Meet Quentin Valognes, The Young New French Cyclist Who’s Conquering The U.S.

Hailing from Lower-Normandy, France, Quentin Valognes, 19, is an ambitious cyclist who recently joined Atlanta’s Novo Nordisk team – and became vice-champion of Georgia on Aug. 2. Novo Nordisk only works with diabetic racers with its mission “to inspire, educate and empower people affected by diabetes.” The team aims to show the world that diabetic people can “live life the way they’d hoped” and “what may be possible with diabetes.” A motto that matches Valognes’ own sense of mission.

Quentin, can you describe your career briefly?

I was born in Caen, Lower-Normandy, France. My entire family is racing, so I came to it naturally. I wasn’t very good in the beginning but I kept practicing. I became better and entered the racing club of Bricquebec, also in Lower-Normandy, while racing for the club of Caen at the same time. I had the chance to practice with local promising racers such as Benoit Cosnefroy, who’s now racing in Chambéry in the AG2R team’s reserve. So I was prepared to do international races.

After a few diabetes problems that led me to the hospital in Caen, I managed to go to a Novo Nordisk press conference in Brittany, France, and I met the team’s founder Phil Southerland. We echanged emails, and he finally told me he wanted me to enter the junior team. He invited me to come to Atlanta, and that’s how the dream began.

You’ve said that this was a chance for you, being a diabetic. Could you explain what this means?

Being a diabetic brings a lot of obligations, but on the other hand, it also brings you character that will make you take care of everything, and be alert. You have to be present for the diabetes all the time. It makes you have an excellent mindset and a flawless lifestyle: that’s why diabetes is – a chance when you’re a cyclist.

What have you been doing since you first got involved with Novo Nordisk?

Phil Southerland proposed to me to come to a talent camp three years ago, for three weeks. It went pretty well, I was as good as the others were, so I entered the junior team the next year, in 2013. I still was in my Norman club, so I was coming to Atlanta for the summer and was in France for the rest of the year. I had the chance to race the Nations Cup and in Canada with the Tour de de l’Abitibi. It was crazy. And then I came back to Atlanta in 2015, and signed a one-year contract with the development team of Novo Nordisk.

What’s a development team?

As its name suggests, it’s a team that aims at developing the cyclists’ skills, and prepare us in order to become professional racers. There’s a long way to go before coming to the highest level so Novo Nordisk put in place this team, and that was a brilliant idea in my opinion. It’s definitely one of the best development team in the world. We have everything at our disposal, our coaches are some of the best ones, just like our team manager, our mechanic, our nurses… They’re all doing a good job.

You recently became vice-champion of Georgia. Can you tell us more about your victory?

We raced for six days cross the state, with six stages. I was with a French sportsmate, and we were a good duo. He won on the first day, and I won on the last one, it was awesome. We always have been at the forefront, trying to show we were in the business now a little bit. There was a time attack too in the middle of the tour.

What’s your speciality when it comes to racing?

I’m a sprinter, definitely. I’ve got huge thighs, so it was obvious I would be. I didn’t have the opportunity to show my sprinting skills in Georgia yet but at the beginning of the season I finished at the fourth position of a race, in the peloton, after a sprint. I hope I’ll be recognized for my sprinting skills very soon.

What’s a typical day like in Novo Nordisk’s development team?

We don’t get up too late because we have to practice early, since the heat is growing really fast after 9:00 am. We all practice together, and then we go back to have lunch in the house. We’re having a power nap in the afternoon and then we do some stretching exercise. After that we go cycling again, just a little bit, peacefully. We also often travel around the world and in the United States.

What is cycling like in the U.S. in your opinion? Is it different from France?

It’s totally different. It’s another way to race. But it’s a great experience. To me, the amateur level in France is way harder than it is in the U.S.: there’s a sense of pleasure in there that is stronger than it is in France. I often heard that the U.S. is a bit late in cycling — it’s true that it was born in Europe, but if there’s something I learned in the U.S. it would be to have fun on a bike and this, this is really beautiful.

Has Novo Nordisk changed your life?

I visited 13 countries, I am now fluent in English and Russian… I often say that I’ve got two legs, two arms, so I have the right to have dreams and realize them just like everyone else does. This also was the opportunity to live in the U.S., which is a country that I like, especially Georgia where people are very kind and welcoming. The weather is very nice by the way!

What are you up to now?

I’m coming back to France this week since I’m racing at the Racing of the Future French championship in Les Pieux, [France], that my father is organizing. Then I’m heading to Boston with the team. We have a pretty busy schedule until this year ends. Novo Nordisk also aims to go to the Tour de France in 2021 — the discovery of insulin will celebrate its 100th birthday that year.