Münsingen is almost a classic in the German marathon scene. Last weekend, the German championship was held there on an 83-kilometer lap. However, the weather was not perfect at all. Autumn took the entire republic into custody and Münsingen was not spared from the rain.
The women started it off. In the beginning there were ten riders who were able to break away from the main field, but the group later shrank to a quintet around Silke Schmidt, Sabine Spitz, Elisabeth Brandau and Esther Fennel. The group set the pace together until Schmidt picked up the pace on a long climb with just under eight kilometers to go. Sabine Spitz was quite fit. Her comeback from her shoulder injury seemed to be successful. She was the only one who could stand up to Schmidt. But it wasn't enough to win. With two kilometers to go, she was no longer able to follow Schmidt. "Silke really rode a very strong finale, she deserved to win.", according to Spitz.
The 26-year-old Silke Schmidt crossed the finish line after 3:24:29 hours and thus secured the German Championship title. Sabine Spitz followed, 28 seconds behind. Elisabeth Brandau won the duel for third place with a time of 3:25:21 hours.
"I thought it was all or nothing. I think I benefited from the fact that Sabine didn't risk everything downhill. I still can't believe it worked. At first I didn't think I would do well today", according to Schmidt.
Then the men had to complete their race. After the 83-kilometre lap, they also had two more 9,8-kilometre loops to complete. And it is precisely these that should bring the all-important maneuvers with them. At the beginning of the remaining kilometers, a total of nine drivers were in promising positions. A trio around Robert Mennen finally managed to break away before Mennen launched his final attack. The 28-year-old pushed the pace on the last climb and was able to celebrate the title at the finish. Shortly before the finish, Hannes Genze, lying in second position, overtook the defect witch. He was intercepted by Markus Bauer and Somin Stiebjahn and had to settle for fourth place.
“I got super high on a climb and tore a gap. After that I pulled through. Now I'm super happy", said Mennen at the finish.
//Result gentlemen
1. Robert Mennen 3:49:04
2. Mark Bauer 3:49:17
3. Simon Stiebjahn 3:49:18
4. Hannes Genze 3:49:42
5. Mark Kaufman 3:50:33
//Result women
1. Silke Schmidt 3:24:29
2. Sabine Spitz 3:24:57
3. Elizabeth Brandau 3:25:21
4. Esther Fennel 3:25:43
5. Nadine Rieder 3:26:51