Bahnsport: The Maloja Pushbikers win the Cottbus Nights. In a three-day battle from September 4th to 6th, Leif Lampater and Marcel Kalz prevailed against the favorite duo de Pauw/de Ketele from Belgium. Pushbiker Nico Heßlich came in third with his partner Lucas Liss.
Lampater/ Kalz only turned the tide in the final classification. “It was a tough battle against the two Belgians for the entire three days. In the end, the final ranking was decisive, with Leif and I coming out on top,” says Marcel Kalz. In addition to the high speed, the wind made the race difficult. On the open track in Cottbus, lap wins were difficult to achieve. The decision should be made in the sprint. “The wind was really strong on the home stretch. Not an easy situation for the ratings. That's why Marcel and I deliberately chose the rear position for the final sprint so as not to be in the wind for too long," says Leif Lampater. It worked, the tactic worked. Lampater and Kalz secured the golden wreath after their second place from the previous year.
Compared to last year's edition of the Cottbus Nights, the local hero Nico Heßlich was able to improve by one place, from fourth to third place. “The win was still a long way away. But I'm still young and would like to be at the start again in the next few years and continue to improve," says Heßlich, looking optimistically to the future. His teammates Stefan Schäfer and Achim Burkart came in seventh, Pushbikers captain Christian Grasmann finished the Cottbus Nights in eighth place, youngster Stefan Mastaller in 14th place.
