Pierre-Nicolas Marqués’s Freehub Memory

Pierre-Nicolas Marqués’ book, “Mémoire en roue libre” (Freewheeling Memory), is an intimate and moving account, weaving together personal adventure, sport, and the fight against Alzheimer’s disease. The author shares his cycling journey across the Pyrenees, undertaken both as an act of charity and a quest for healing after a romantic disappointment. With sensitivity, he reveals how cycling brings him closer to his memories and his grandmother, reflecting on memory, solitude, and resilience.

Source: Press Release

Pierre-Nicolas Marqués, author-poet and amateur cyclist, finds in physical effort a metaphor for overcoming grief and reconnecting with what truly matters. The preface is written by Olivier de Ladoucette, President and Founder of La Fondation Recherche Alzheimer. Inside are poignant testimonials from Dorian Foulon, world champion and Paralympic champion, and Pierrick Fedrigo, four-time Tour de France stage winner.

A Committed Book: The book aims to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s disease, a fight that concerns not only those affected but also their loved ones and society as a whole. The author undertook this cycling crossing of the Pyrenees to raise funds for this cause and to highlight the importance of research against this disease.

Tribute to Cycling: Through the prism of the Tour de France and his passion for cycling, the author pays tribute to the tradition and values of perseverance, determination, and solidarity.

Resilience: The narrative is also a testament to the individual’s ability to overcome personal challenges, here symbolized by the physical effort of cycling in the face of romantic breakup and grief.

Meditation on Memory: The book questions the nature of memory, its importance in building our identity, and what happens when we lose our memories, highlighting the work of emotional memory.

Travel as Therapy: The journey is also a therapeutic trip, a way to find oneself, to meditate in motion, and to connect more deeply with one’s thoughts and emotions.

The Importance of Writing: The author emphasizes writing as a means of preserving memory and as a tool for sharing lived experiences.

A Story of Memories…Testimonials from Dorian Foulon and Pierrick Fédrigo

“This journey allowed me to meet wonderful people… I wanted other people to share a memory that is dear to them. So I asked my friend Dorian Foulon, world and Paralympic individual pursuit champion, to take up the pen alongside me. To conclude the chapter on the Tour de France, Pierrick Fedrigo, four-time stage winner of the race, also agreed to share his most beautiful memory of the Tour.” Pierre-Nicolas Marqués

Two unpublished texts from champions Dorian Foulon and Pierrick Fédrigo, invited by the author to share a powerful memory related to their sport.