Cycling: First day, first medal! The Association of German Cyclists got off to a great start at the Road World Championships in Yorkshire. In the mixed team time trial, the chosen sextet won the silver medal behind the Netherlands.
Rain at the start of the Road World Championships
In the pouring rain, the Road World Championships celebrated the start in Yorkshire today. In Harrogate, where the first stage of the 2014 Tour de France ended, the first medals were distributed. In the mixed team time trial, it was first for the men and later for the women to complete a 13,7-long circuit. This had to be described as demanding. Because it contains a 1,1 kilometer long climb with an average of 5,6 percent and many other waves. Tight curves also meant that technical skills were required, especially on wet roads. Tony Martin, Nils Politt, Jasha Sütterlin, Lisa Brennauer, Lisa Klein and Mieke Kröger started for the BDR. In addition to the Dutch, the Spaniards and the Italians, the Germans also had a chance of winning a medal. The BDR finally won silver at the European Championships in Alkmaar.
The Dutch pulverize the best time
At 16:01 p.m. the German men rolled off the starting ramp. At this point, the Brits led the ranking list relatively confidently at the finish. But the last group - consisting of Italy, Germany and the Netherlands - should be able to attack the best time again. Italy's Edoardo Affini, Davide Martinelli and Elia Viviani tagged Tatiana Gudero, Elisa Longo Borghini and Elena Cecchini, 1,5 seconds back. The German men were almost 13 seconds slower than Brits Jon Archibald, Daniel Bigham and Harry Tanfield. Only the Dutch around Jos van Emden, Koen Bouwman and Bauke Mollema were able to set a new best time. The orange-clad trio was a whopping 20 seconds faster than the local heroes.
Germany fights for silver
Now it was the women's turn. At first it looked like the Italians would set a new best time. But they lost too much time due to a breakdown by Elisa Longo Borghini. In the end, time stopped four seconds behind. So the British were sure of a medal. Still, it wasn't enough to win. As expected, the Dutch Lucinda Brand, Amy Pieters and Riejanne Markus were in a class of their own. Even the Germans had nothing more to oppose. After all, both the British and the Italians were able to intercept and thus win the silver medal.