Cycling: Yesterday evening the Race around Ireland came to an end - Bernhard Steinberger was the first of the solo riders to reach the finish line and that means: European Champion! He sat on the bike for almost 100 hours in the past few days and cranked the bike constantly. All the better to be able to celebrate this success now.
The race remained exciting right up to the last few minutes and Steinberger fought for first place, which he had secured on Wednesday night, with Bernd Paul, who later came in second. The past few days had been an enormous stress test for himself, but also for his team. Steinberger only allowed himself very short breaks to change clothes or to let his muscles rest for a few minutes - there was no sleep, if at all, then a short power nap had to suffice. The external conditions were good by Irish standards, but at night the thermometer sometimes fell below 5°C - quite uncomfortable on the bike.
The team also had to push themselves to their absolute limits. Sometimes the driver had to sit behind the wheel for 18 hours and steer the team car over the narrow roads of the Irish countryside. The navigator next to him – always with his route book and laptop in view – often had to react at short notice, reschedule and guide Steinberger safely to his destination. Even colds, which the team members caught next to the continuously open window, could not stop them and with joint forces it was done on Thursday evening at 18:04 - Bernhard Steinberger was the first of the solo riders to cross the finish line in Navan and thus to the European Championship in ultracycling . Congratulations!
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