Cycling: The German team Bora – hansgrohe continues to improve. Despite a few well-known departures - or perhaps because of them - Jai Hindley achieved the first overall victory in a Grand Tour this season at the Giro d'Italia. Will the way up in the Raubling racing team continue?
Hindley wins the Giro d'Italia for Bora – hansgrohe
The Bora – hansgrohe team has existed since 2010. At that time it was still active under the name NetApp and not in the first league of cycling. Meanwhile, however, the Raublinger racing team is one of the best teams in the world. You could say best of the rest, because the gap to the top 4 is huge – for now! Because Bora - hansgrohe will continue to attack. The upheaval - the way to a team for the overall standings at major national tours - has been successful. Jay Hindley won not just a stage, but the entire Giro d'Italia. The triumph is a result of team strength, as Hindley not only won because he was the strongest driver, but also and above all because his team-mates gave their all for him. But he was and is far from the only captain in the squad.
35 wins of the season, 82 podiums
The name Lennard Kamna should not be missing from any annual review. Although only 26 years old, he has already experienced a lot in his career. He has twice withdrawn from racing for a few months. But he came back and even rode the Cape Epic mountain bike race at the end of 2021. He was already celebrating a day's victory in the Tour de France. In 2022 he also managed to win a stage at the Giro d'Italia. And for Jai Hindley he was the most important helper in the high mountains. He almost won another part of the Tour of France. When he was stopped a few meters from the finish line on La Planche des Belles Filles, cycling fans from all over the world suffered with him. He can be seen as symbolic of the hierarchy in the team: sometimes he gets to win himself, but mostly he is there for his teammates. So it is not surprising that Bora - hansgrohe was able to win no fewer than 35 this season. More than ten different professionals were able to celebrate at least one win. Alexander Vlasov won the Tour de Romandie, Sergio Higuita the Tour of Catalonia. Sam Bennett was victorious at Eschborn – Frankfurt, Mark Haller at the Bemer Cyclassics in Hamburg. Giovanni Aleotti won the Sibiu Cycling Tour and Cian Uijtdebroeks the Tour de l'Avenir.
4 riders go, 4 riders come
After such a successful season there is no reason for Bora – hansgrohe to make many changes. Especially since the big upheaval was only a year ago. Four riders go, four riders come. wilco kelderman and Felix Grossschartner will be missed in the future, especially on tours. Martin Lass and Lukas Postlberger were more responsible for one-day races, classics and sprints. All four had their tasks and therefore left gaps. But these can be absorbed by the newcomers to the team. Bob jungels won part of the Tour de France this year. The Luxembourger has shown that he is not only strong in the mountains, but can also finish classics well up front. Nico Denz was successful in the Tour de Suisse and is considered a hard worker who is happy to serve the team. He has his strengths especially on the flat, on slightly hilly terrain and in breakaway groups. These two drivers alone will make Bora – hansgrohe even more difficult to calculate in the future. The manageable list of newcomers is completed by Victor Koretzky and Florian Lipowitz. The Frenchman only got into road cycling in the pre-season and is actually a mountain biker. And the German is only 22 and is considered a great tour driver talent because he has his strength in the mountains. All in all, there will be little change in the Bora – hansgrohe team, which is good news after such a strong year.