European Track Cycling Championships in Munich
Titles seven and eight for Friedrich and Kluge/Reinhardt
Lea Sophie Friedrich cheers after her victory. photo
© Jean-Marc Wiesner/dpa
Lea Sophie Friedrich as well as Roger Kluge and Theo Reinhardt won titles seven and eight for the German track cyclists on the final day of the European Championships.
Lea Sophie Friedrich as well as Roger Kluge and Theo Reinhardt won titles seven and eight for the German track cyclists on the final day of the European Championships.
After the success with Emma Hinze and Pauline Grabosch in the team sprint, Friedrich from Cottbus also won in the combat sprint Keirin and secured her second gold. With a splendid final round, the world champion relegated the Polish Urszula Los and Olena Starikova from the Ukraine to the following places. “I’m happy that I was able to defend my title,” said the double European champion.
Superior success at Madison
In the last European Championship decision, Berlin’s Kluge and Reinhardt celebrated a superior success in Madison. In the two-man team drive over 50 kilometers known from the six-day race, the duo won with 101 points ahead of France (91) and Belgium (58). They managed to score points in 22 out of 25 ratings. “No one has done that yet,” said Kluge. “We showed today that we help to create the best in the world. We saw that we are internationally competitive. There’s no need to hide the fact that something like this gives a boost,” said partner Reinhardt.
Maximilian Dörnbach had previously also won silver in the keirin. Only Frenchman Sebastian Vigier was faster than the man from Cottbus. Marc Jurczyk from Erfurt finished eighth.
Super record for the BDR
The Association of German Cyclists (BDR) was the most successful association in the track competitions, with eight gold, four silver and one bronze medals. “We were able to present ourselves very well in front of the local crowd and are satisfied. That’s a great result,” said BDR sports director Patrick Moster.
However, he also restricted that the strongest competition was not at the start in all disciplines. “This is a position determination, which is positive. But it also showed us one or the other thing that we need to work on further,” he judged. With a view to the World Championships from October 12th to 16th in Paris, the performance gives “a huge self-confidence”. The path taken with the new national coaches Jan van Eijden (sprint) and Tim Zühlke (endurance) is the right one. Everything harmonized well. “That surprised me personally, too,” said Moster.