Cycling: There are no absolute top favorites before the 14th European Marathon Championships. The battle for the European title at the Rothaus Hegau Bike-Marathon is as open as rarely before, even if the defending champion Christoph Sauser and the Olympic champions Jaroslav Kulhavy, Gunn-Rita Dahle-Flesjaa and Sabine Spitz are mentioned most frequently.
The audience in the Hegau can look forward to the most exciting conditions for a high-class mountain bike event. After the women's cross-country world rankings first Jolanda Neff (Stöckli Pro Team) and, for a short time, ex-European champion Esther Süss (Wheeler-iXS) joined the ranks of favorites, it will definitely be top-class riders who will remain without a medal on Sunday.
Gunn-Rita-Dahle-Flesjaa (Multivan-Merida) expects a “tactical races" and hopes – that sounds modest for a nine-time world champion – "fighting for a top three result" to be able to. "I can't wait any longer. Of course, when you're on the starting line, you always have a chance to win. On a good day I can also fight for victory”, the Norwegian describes her ideas.
“I would certainly prefer a course that is a little more demanding in terms of driving technique. But I also have to say that I think it's good that there are so many different types of routes in mountain biking.", she says of the course she took on for the first time during the week.
Sabine Spitz was already third at the EM in Singen in 2013 and has set her sights on a medal this time too. It would be her twelfth EM precious metal overall. “My preparation for the Marathon European Championships went well for the most part. This included the cross-country races in April to get used to the pace of competition again. Especially in the first race, it worked better than expected. That's why I think the form should be right for the EM.", she is confident.
The three-time Olympic medalist expects an exciting race, “Especially on a course like Hegau, which, in addition to the many short climbs, is also characterized by long, flat sections that are often very exposed to the wind. So far I haven't been so lucky in Singen. I hope I can change that next Sunday.”
Sally Bigham managed the feat of coming second four times in a row at the European Marathon Championships. It is logical that she is aiming for her first international title. It is therefore not surprising that she did not compete in the British Championships last weekend. The background is an infection.
"I didn't start because I want to be XNUMX% fit for the European Championship", gives the Topeak Ergon rider an idea of how focused she is.
Esther Süss took a long time before she decided to register for the European Championship. The Swiss won the title in Singen in 2013, but will still be active in Solothurn on Saturday.
The German marathon champion Silke Schmidt (Herzlichst Cyprus) is turning down her ambitions as a full-time lawyer. "Top ten would be a great result given the circumstances", says the woman from Munich.
If you go through the starting field before the 98-kilometer men's race, you can see that tactics will play an even greater role in the fight for the blue European Championship jersey than in the women's race. Team tactics above all. With Olympic champion Jaroslav Kulhavy and defending champion Christoph Sauser, Specialized Racing has two absolute aces up its sleeve, who will also support each other up to a certain point.
Kulhavy could perhaps be described as the top favorite on this course, but since the Czech is using the race more as "preparation for the World Cup" and only speaks of "90 percent" performance, his opportunities are reduced.
Topeak-Ergon sends three top drivers into the race. Starting with Alban Lakata, who became European Champion at the Rothaus Hegau Bike Marathon in 2013. The East Tyrolean seems confident. “My form is steadily improving. After the Cape Epic I was pretty exhausted as usual, but I'm slowly getting the expected boost from this tough race. I've won a few times in Singen. Would be cool if I could add a third European title to my palmares there”, he makes an offensive statement, but at the same time warns: "It won't be easy to assert oneself on this not exactly selective course and this strong field of participants"
His teammate Kristian Hynek won the Lake Garda Marathon last Saturday, but that's not why he's on the favourites. With Robert Mennen, the team from Koblenz has a third trump card up their sleeves. Whether the German champions from 2013 can hold their own against a Kulhavy or a Sauser remains questionable, but the Nörvenicher has surprised everyone more than once.
“I see myself well prepared for the Marathon European Championships. It's a highlight of my calendar this year. The last marathon in Lassaic and also the fourth place on Saturday in Houffalize gave me motivation to be on the right track and to have recovered well from the previous stage races (Andalusia and Cape Epic)", explains Mennen, who had a defect while leading in Houffalize.
He prepared himself in a high-altitude training camp in Livigno and likes the undulating terrain in Hegau. "Of course we hope to be able to play to our strengths as a team, but I'll drive on my own."
Team Bulls also has three candidates at the start, who belong to the extended circle of medal candidates. Karl Platt, the 2008 German Marathon Champion in Singen, also refers to the tactical component: "We'll make sure we act as a team. Urs (Huber), Tim (Böhme) and I will certainly not race against each other. We'll think of a tactic and see how everyone is doing. Driving away alone is useless here. Even if Simon (Stiebjahn) attacks, they no longer trust him either.", argues the Osthofener.
He also refers to the Olympic champion: “Jaroslav Kulhavy, this is a special case. If he gets away, he'll do it as long as he's as strong as he was at Cape Epic.", Platt has great respect for Kulhavy.
Local hero Tim Böhme is a bit skeptical. "I don't have the toughness to compete, I have to let myself be surprised." The shoulder injury from Cape Epic, which forced him to give up and take a break from training, robbed him of the opportunity for preparatory competitions. “I also notice that the Cape Epic tour is missing in my setup. Actually, I don't feel too bad, but without a competition you never know what it's worth. I was basically training in a valley of the clueless.", says the singer, who now lives in Frankfurt.
The Centurion-Vaude team deserves the outsider role. At least when it comes to medals. Jochen Käß has already been within reach of a medal at world championships, but it has never been enough for the three-time German marathon champion. He emphasizes that he drives as a semi-pro against full professionals.
"We will not commit ourselves to a captain beforehand, but will see who is still doing well after a round", explains Käß, who also had to deal with an infection during preparation, which robbed him of some training time.
Team colleague Markus Kaufmann has gotten back into shape after breaking his collarbone at the end of February. It remains to be seen what the two Germans can do together with their Austrian teammates Daniel Geismayr and Hermann Pernsteiner.