Sir Bradley Wiggins has opened up about cocaine addiction, revealing his children feared for his life.
Wiggins retired from cycling in December 2016 after an outstanding career.
He won five Olympic gold medals and was the first ever Briton to win the Tour de France.
But since his retirement, the 45-year-old revealed he became a ‘functioning cocaine addict’ as he struggled to adapt to life after stepping off the bike.
Sir Bradley Wiggins has opened up about cocaine addiction
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In an excerpt from his new autobiography, Wiggins told The Observer: “I was a functioning addict.
“People wouldn’t realise. I was high most of the time for many years.
"I was doing s**t loads of cocaine.
"I had a real problem and my kids were actually going to put me in rehab at one point. I’ve never spoken about that.
"I really was walking a tightrope. There were times when my son was worried I was going to end up dead in the morning."
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The Briton was able to receive treatment after former US cyclist Lance Armstrong offered to pay.
Wiggins is now 12 months sober and attends regular therapy sessions.
He was left bankrupt and homeless as he amassed debts of up to £2 million last year.
Wiggins continued: "They wouldn't hear from me for days on end.
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Sir Bradley Wiggins won 5 Olympic Gold Medals during his career
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"I can talk about these things candidly now. There was an element of me living a lie, in not talking about it.
“There’s no middle ground for me. I can’t just have a glass of wine.
"If I have a glass of wine, then I'm buying drugs.
"My proclivity to addiction was easing the pain that I lived with."
The five-time Olympic gold medalist revealed in 2022 that he had allegedly been sexually abused by his coach when he was just 13.
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The 45-year-old claimed he was sexually assaulted over three years between the ages of 13 and 16 by a 72-year-old coach,
“My addiction was a way of easing that pain that I lived with," he continued.
"I'm still figuring a lot of this out but what I have got is a lot more control of myself and my triggers.
"I'm a lot more at peace with myself now which is a really big thing."
After stepping away from the sport nearly a decade ago, Wiggins is now falling back in love with cycling.
His son Ben is now pursuing a cycling career of his own
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"Whenever I get on my bike, it reminds me of being 13 years old and how unhappy I was at 13," he said.
"But my escapism was being on my bike.
"It's sort of given me that same feeling again now.
"I've always viewed it from the negative side with what came with my career, and what happened at the end of my career, whereas now I'm seeing it for what it is."
He continues to work on his own recovery, as well as coaching his 20-year-old son, Ben, through his own cycling career.
