Want to make someone appreciate baseball? Simple. Show them Mariano Rivera, still dominant and dignified after 17 seasons. Want to build a basketball maniac? Give them 40 inelegant minutes of Dirk Nowitzki—flailing arms, stumbling feet, unshrinking in the clutch.

If you want to create a cycling fan, just offer Jens Voigt.

Jens who? Voigt's...