Pure excitement at the World Cup opener in Nové Město, Czech Republic
TREK Future Racing presents itself in top form at the first World Cup.
Emilly Johnston on the podium for the first time at a World Cup | Björn Riley misses podium by 1 second and finishes 4th.
After 135 days of preparation, a multitude of test races and a lot of "new things" for our young athletes, it was the first race of the 2023 World Cup season and the anticipation, but also the tension among riders and support team was correspondingly high.
For the first time in the history of the U23 category, a short track race was held at a World Cup - 20 minutes "all-in" is the name of the game and the course in the biathlon stadium in Nové Město in the Czech Republic had it all. At the end of exciting and quite tactically driven races, Björn Riley missed the podium by only one second and finished in 4th place.
Tobias Lillelund reached 22nd place and Mario Bair, he was involved in a crash shortly after the start, was able to finish the race uninjured.
In the U23 women's race Emilly Johnston showed a top performance with 6th place in the short distance and Tamara Wiedmann also finished only 5 seconds later in 12th place. This shows not only the enormous power density, but also the tactical race course.
Voices of the drivers
"I was fighting for my life in the starting laps because I knew it was important to be in the leading group to avoid big gaps. With 3 laps to go I attacked the group I was in (3rd-10th) and managed to get a small lead. In the last two laps I tried to keep my position, focus on steady pedaling and stay calm. I didn't focus on the result or the placing, just on how I was riding and how I could keep the gap and make up time. Seeing the finish line and knowing I made the podium at a World Cup was the best feeling ever!" said Emilly Johnston.
"Wow that was a tough one, what a speed and a fight for every position. The first two laps were very difficult because I got stuck in the group. After that I was perfectly positioned when the eventual winner attacked on the last lap. I hesitated a bit and was in 7th place, then managed to overtake some riders in the last 1000m and sprinted to 4th place - totally knackered, but happy and 1st Shorttrack World Cup in the books", said Björn Riley.
After just one day's break, the next showdown was already on the agenda. In the U23 men's race, the best 140 young athletes from 32 countries took to the demanding World Cup course. The first 2 of 7 laps started with a high speed and our boys had to pay tribute here. Björn Riley and Tobias Lillelund were able to keep the pace well and Björn Riley positioned himself in the top 10. In the end, however, a defect on this day prevented the hoped-for placement - which does not diminish the top performance of the athletes. Mario Bair, Björn Riley, Tobias Lillelund and Nils Aebersold all rode with full commitment, passion and demanded everything from their bodies.
In the U23 women's race, a group of 3 was able to break away very quickly and Emilly Johnston led the chasing group. After a technical defect of the leading rider, Emilly Johnston started an attack, was able to break away and hold this advantage until the finish and achieve a place on the podium for the first time at a World Cup. Tamara Wiedmann started great, but then caught the wrong group and lost some connection to the front. However, she showed herself again and again until the end of the race and tried everything to get even further ahead.
Mario Bair: 20
Bjorn Riley: 21
Tobias Lillelund: 34
Nils Aebersold: 54
Emilly Johnston: 3
Tamara Wiedmann: 22
"In recent months, we have put results in the background and focused on development potential and building for the long term. We have deliberately refrained from reporting on race results in order to take some of the pressure off and to show that we not only intend to think long-term, but that this intention is also evident in our behavior. I am super happy with our team and grateful for the trust they have placed in us," says Bernd Reutemann.
You want to know what is important in our team?
Here you can find the 100 days report of team manager Bernd Reutemann:
The team was also active off the race track. Last weekend, the 1st Girls Camp took place in the AREA47. 3 days of technical training with the former world champion Tracy Moseley from Great Britain and Mandy Pitscher from SRAM, who as an engineer stood by the girls with "wheel and deed".