The Chain: Think you know Bradley Wiggins? Think again. A moving and uplifting memoir of self-discovery. The sports autobiography of 2026

by Sir Bradley Wiggins

'Back in 2012, everyone knew who Bradley Wiggins was. Everyone, that is, but me. Thirteen years after the summer that defined me, I have finally defined myself. The disguises have gone. I've made peace with myself.'

A WATERSTONES SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025

A GUARDIAN BEST SPORTS BOOK OF 2025

A DAILY TELEGRAPH BEST BOOK OF 2025

'IT'S NOT A LIGHT READ BUT, BLIMEY, IT IS BRILLIANT.' POLLY VERNON, THE TIMES

'DISARMINGLY HONEST AND ROGUISHLY HUMOROUS.' JONATHAN LIEW, THE GUARDIAN

'SUCH A BRAVE SUPER OPEN, SUPER HONEST. IT'S GOING TO HELP A LOT OF PEOPLE.' CHRIS EVANS, VIRGIN RADIO

'SEARING AND INSIGHTFUL … HARROWING … COMPELLING …DEFINITELY WORTH READING.' DAVID WALSH, THE SUNDAY TIMES

'RAW AND GRAPHIC' DAILY TELEGRAPH

Think you know Bradley Wiggins? Think again.

Join Bradley Wiggins on a remarkable journey of self-discovery during which he faced his greatest ever opponent – the demons inside his head. He has cast aside his fragile shell and is the person he always wanted to be. Finally, he is happy in his own skin. He has broken the chain.

Bradley Wiggins is the greatest British cyclist of his generation. A national hero on both track and road, he won five Olympic gold medals, eight world titles and the Tour de France.

But his is a story mired in contradiction, controversy, and confusion. Sat on a throne after winning gold at London 2012, just ten days after becoming the first Briton to win the Tour de France, here was a man with the world at his feet. Sporting hero. People’s champion. Legend. Everyone knew who ‘Wiggo’ was. Everyone, that is, but him.

Bradley’s own truth was one of a chaotic and disturbing upbringing characterised by abandonment and abuse. The bike had been his escape but he knew that the second he got out of the saddle he was a shadow-man with no self-belief and even less self-worth.

With zero confidence in his value as a human being, attention was his worst nightmare. Bradley’s answer was to wear a mask. He became ‘Sir Wiggo’, the loveable rogue, the disguise slowly suffocating the real him, crushing the last few remnants of self-esteem.

Bradley descended into a deep personal despair marked by drug addiction. It was his lowest point, and one which, he freely admits, could have resulted in his death.

Bradley’s saviour has been himself. Incredibly he found the strength to embark on a remarkable journey of self-discovery during which he faced his greatest ever opponent – the demons inside his head. In so doing he reached an understanding of what and who he is.

The result is this powerful memoir, The Chain.

It is a journey he now wants to share. He wants others to understand they are not alone in their mental battles; that embracing honesty and openness is the key to personal happiness.

Bradley Wiggins has cast aside his fragile shell. Now, as the person he always wanted to be, he has become an inspiration to us all. Forget the jerseys, the medals. Finally, Bradley Wiggins is who he is, in his own skin. He has broken the chain.

Genres: Cycling, Sports, Biography

310 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 23, 2025

Reviews

[Felix Faulkner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Possibly on the edge of 3&4 stars but cause I like the bloke I’ll give it a 4. Again another harrowing book for the luscious surrounds of Sri Lanka but an important one to understand the weight of sporting success on an individual.

[Brian Haining · Rating 3 out of 5]

Both an easy and tough read. Easy in the sense that there's space between the lines, so pages are read quickly, tough because the content is nearly exclusively downbeat as Bradley explores his demons and why he is where he is.

If you are looking for details of cycling achievements, training regimes that made him an elite cyclist, colleagues, and anecdotes, this is not the book for you. Instead, Bradley looks at his upbringing, an absent alcoholic father, abuse received as a boy from his first cycling coach, fall out with Team Sky and British cycling and being implicated in drug rumours to do with medical TUA's and unexplained jiffy bags.

As a cycling enthusiast, I found his fall out with Team Sky interesting, which followed quickly from the pinnacle of his 2012 Tour de France win and Olympic time trial gold, he was edged aside as they went with Chris Frome as their main rider. The drug implications followed, which Bradley clearly explains away.

The book goes deep into his fractured relationship with his cycling father, Gary, touches on his bankruptcy and concludes with his fall into drug addiction and ultimate ongoing recovery.

It comes across that writing his 'underlying' story down has helped Bradley be in the better place he is in now.

I wish him well

[Clare Nestor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite a raw and bruising account of life since 2012 and how he faced the traumas of his childhood and then celebrity due to his cycling achievements. A lot of demons. Very open and honest.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matt Rendell has written a book that does justice to Bradley Wiggins as both an athlete and a person. It’s raw, it’s honest, and it’s a reminder that even the best of us have to work hard to keep our chains intact. Wiggins may have been at the top of the world, but The Chain reveals that he’s always been linked to something more complex.

The book is far from a simple tribute to Wiggins’ success. Rendell is also willing to highlight the flaws, the mistakes. This complexity adds depth and authenticity to the book, which ultimately leaves the reader with a better understanding of the man behind the fame. For Wiggins’ fans, it’s not just a chance to cheer for their hero; it’s a chance to relate to him as human, along with the warts and all. There’s a small pacing issue in the middle sections where the narrative can feel a little bogged down with details, but it picks back up and rounds off with a decent conclusion.

The book also doesn’t gloss over Wiggins’ controversies—whether it’s his difficult relationships with teammates or his outspoken moments - giving the reader a fuller picture of a man who, like all brilliant athletes, is not perfect.

[Paul Kirkwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blimey! Wiggo (and he doesn't covet that persona) has an awful lot of baggage in his panniers and spends the vast majority of this book unpacking it. He was abused by his coach as a teenager; his father abandoned him as a baby and was later murdered; his mother's subsequent partner was aggressive towards him; he was accused of taking drugs to enhance his performance; and after all that in recent years he descended to the depths of alcohol and cocaine addiction. It's all a long way from the chipper chap sitting on the throne at Hampton Court after winning gold at the London 2012 Olympics.

In fact, I'd have liked much more about his cycling. His wins in the Olympics and Tour de France are skipped over in a couple of pages. There's another book beckoning. For now we have endless self-analysis. After a while Bradley gets boring as sometimes people talking about their mental health do. I felt like his counsellor.

In summary, it's a worthwhile and eye-opening tale but of greater value to readers sharing the author's issues than cycling fans. Style wise, The Chain is a quick, easy read like many sporting biographies but lacks colour and detail. More of a transcribed podcast than a literary work.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved watching Bradley Wiggins when he was cycling - it was so exciting to watch him win the TdF and his gold medals at the Olympics. This book was a surprise to me, I don't really look at newspapers etc so missed all the "Wiggo" stuff and he only really came onto my radar again when I heard that he had financial problems.

I didn't know that he was facing such awful demons and struggled so much with his mental health, which is what he writes about in this book. His descriptions of the abuse he experienced as a child (sexual from his coach, physical & emotional from his father, step father and, I'd say even his mum) are powerful and disturbing. His descriptions of the lack of duty of care by Dave Brailsford & the Sky team set up is shocking. He is clear eyed about how his mental health struggles led him down the road of cocaine addiction.

I hope he truly is finding his way now. This book made me think of the very young men who are now involved in road race cycling, where there is even more money involved than when BW was cycling, which means more pressure. I hope they are getting more support that he did.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you’re after a cheery bedtime read, this isn’t it. Bradley Wiggins’ story is one of triumph, collapse, and painful recovery — told with often shocking honesty. The man once celebrated as the upbeat “Modfather” of British cycling turns out to be far more complex, and at times, deeply troubled. After the highest of highs — Tour de France glory, Olympic golds, public adoration — came the lowest of lows: drug addiction, sexual abuse, unethical press intrusion, marraige breakup and ultimately, bankruptcy. Wiggins doesn’t hold back, and much of it makes for uncomfortable reading. Only my long-standing love of cycling kept me turning the pages, but I’m glad I did. The book offers a raw look at the cost of fame and the fragility of success. He still has plenty of life ahead, and I sincerely hope he finds contentment, purpose, and peace. Above all, I hope he’s OK.

[Karim Khalil · Rating 2 out of 5]

Went to The Hackney Empire to hear Sir Bradley being interviewed. It was a disconcerting evening akin to attending one of his therapy sessions, lacking in any interaction with the audience and disappointingly detached, despite all the words spoken about being open and honest.

The Chain is the same - unfortunately it is a repetitive regurgitation of undoubtedly damaging historical personal events formulated to explain his catastrophic collapse into cocaine and the destruction of family life.

The repeated claim that this is authentic Bradley is troubling albeit that he acknowledges in the final chapter that this cannot be so.

I wish him well with his continuing battle against addiction but was saddened at the lack of any depth of apology to his wife for destroying all that she had built around the family and the years supporting him to achieve his dreams.

[Hugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

A searingly open & honest account of the demons he’s struggled with since childhood and how he’s finally come to terms with them.
It’s hard to believe from what we perceive from the outside that all this was going on on the inside.
Unlike me to polish off a book in four days but I found this a fascinating read, eloquent, reflective and inspiring.
I sincerely hope his recovery continues and so glad he has finally found his own path to recovery and happiness.
Probably not the account of his life you’re expecting but a really, really good read.

[Alan Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

That must have been a hard book to write. I went to a talk he gave to publicise the launch of the book. He came across as very genuine and astonishingly candid about his demons. As someone who likes cycling and admired Bradley Wiggins as a cyclist but not as a celebrity, I found it both illuminating and what happened to him as understandable.

There are many lessons to be drawn but one I am reminded of is that we really do not know those in the public eye.

[Ondra Stavěl]

I always admire Bradley Wiggins as great athlete.I have had any idea what was going through in recent years.Great book.

[Rob Twinem · Rating 5 out of 5]

An honest, open personal account of one mans rise to sporting glory and the events in his life that almost destroyed him...Highly recommended and an essential read even if you are not a cycling fan.

[Matt Haydock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful, honest and insightful. I really enjoyed this one. It completely changed what I thought I knew about him. Inspirational stuff.

[Caroline Stancer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bradley's openness and honesty in this book makes it a difficult read.

[Paul Lehane · Rating 3 out of 5]

A tough, brutal & unrelenting read.

[Rob Fairclough · Rating 4 out of 5]

Harrowing and insightful

[Rauno Villberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Five stars for the bravery of baring his low points and what he's suffered, but (a generous) three stars for the actual reading experience.
I feel like a lot of it was dragged out too long, perhaps to make up the page count.
And - personal bias showing here - I'd have liked to hear more about the cycling. Which, hey, was my own faulty expectation perhaps.