Team Lübbering: Manuela Freund comes third at the Skoda Velorace Dresden and thus consolidates her lead in the overall standings of the German Cycling Cup. Over 105 flat kilometers through the Saxon state capital, Tanja Frühmesser from the Veloclub Augsburg Racing Team wins the women's classification.
More than 500 participants are ready to start at 11:40 am on Dresden's Neumarkt. The Frauenkirche is enthroned next to them, behind them the Elbe shimmers under a bright blue sky. The neutralized starting section leads through the historic heart of Dresden's old town: Frauenkirche, Brühlsche Terrassen, Semperoper. A triad of high tourism culture. But cycling tourists look with different eyes: sun, wind, cobblestones. Manuela Freund from Team Lübbering is allowed to stand in the front row, the entitlement to do so is tailor-made for her: the yellow jersey of the leaders in the overall standings. As with the Tour de France, an award that comes with privileges.
Manuela Freund would have the best view of the tourist sights from the front row, but cyclists have a different view, especially with a yellow jersey on their shoulders: the wind is not blowing too strongly, cobblestones are only in the neutralized area and " warm temperatures don't bother me". 105 kilometers are on the program, five laps through Dresden, a largely flat street circuit - too flat for Freund's taste. But the yellow jersey is also a responsibility and the competition never sleeps. Her lead over second-placed Helena Bieber is only eight points.
But city circuits are not only flat, they are also dangerous, and the pace and nervousness are equally high. The first two 21-kilometer laps take less than an hour – at an average speed of around 45 km/h. In the third lap, a fall tears the field apart. In the tunnel, which leads back to the Waldschlößchenbrücke and over the Elbe, Helena Bieber, who placed second, has to give up the race, the first diagnosis being an arm fracture. Although Manuela Freund does not support herself, she is held up and falls behind. "I didn't have a chance to come back on my own and the men around me couldn't get back up to the front either." At the front of the race, the strongly represented Leeze Biehler Cycling Team keeps setting the pace and in the end takes the well-deserved victory in the person of Patrick Altefrohne home in the men's classification - scored in a mass sprint between Brühlsche Terrassen and the banks of the Elbe.
Two women were also able to stay in the leading group, after 105 kilometers Tanja Frühmesser wins just ahead of Vivian Maciej. Manuela Freund crosses the finish line in the second larger group, almost nine minutes behind. And can still feel like a winner because the yellow jersey stays on her shoulders.
In view of the heavy falls of the competition, the euphoria is somewhat dampened immediately after the race: “The fall looked bad, I had to take a deep breath. I'm glad I made it through unscathed and it looks like I even defended my yellow jersey."
The yellow jersey will remain in the ranks of Team Lübbering, at least until the Rothaus Riderman on the penultimate weekend in September. After that, only the end of the season in Münster is on the agenda. "I have to go there now, of course," says Manuela Freund. Such a yellow jersey obliges. "But with the yellow jersey, it's easier to get time off for the races." The yellow jersey, distinction, responsibility, privilege.