Magnus Backstedt was born in Linkoping Sweden in 1975 and became a professional cyclist in 1996. Magnus showed signs of his talent in the spring of 1998 by placing 7th in the Queen of the Classics – Paris-Roubaix. He went on to win a stage of the Tour De France that year and officially hit the big time. Magnus or ‘Maggy’ continued his successes as a professional for a number of years before claiming his greatest win, the 2004 Paris-Roubaix.

In 2007 Magnus became Swedish National Road Race Champion and went on to win a stage in the Giro d’Italia in 2008, before his first retirement. Magnus then became a familiar voice on various channels with his knowledgeable commentary.

Magnus later started his own team with his former manager Martin McCrossan. He managed as well as coached the riders for Sprocket Pro Cycling and later Team UK Youth. After 2 years out of the sport he came back and raced in the UK as a pro again.

Since the beginning of 2013 Magnus has been racing Ironman triathlons, during which time he managed to qualify for Kona after only 8 months of training.

In 2014 he started working with Verve Cycling, bringing a new PowerMeter to market and in doing so spending a lot of time with “granfondo” riders understanding their needs in training with power.

His ability to interact with people from around the world is one of Magnus’ strong points due to his language skills.

Magnus has always been looking for the competitive edge and in doing so has worked with the best coaches in the world, learning and understanding how to devise training plans to get the maximum out of himself. This is now something that he is putting in to practice with the athletes he coaches. Hard work always pays off!