Marion Fromberger sprints to the German mountain bike championship title in Hausach. The rider from the Mountainbike Racingteam dominated the final ahead of defending champion Lia Schrievers.
As a three-time World Cup winner and second in the overall World Cup, one might think that a German championship is of little importance. But for Marion Fromberger, winning the German championship was an important part of this season and also of her career, according to the 22-year-old in an interview after the race. “I was super prepared and still extremely nervous. It's not easy when you know everyone expects you to win. I'm very happy that I was able to withstand this pressure and will proudly wear my champion's jersey next year," said the new German champion. The race itself didn't show much of her nervousness. On the natural track in Hausach she dominated the entire race. Fastest in the time trial and thus position one for the finals, and here too she was able to confidently place her overtaking maneuvers. In the last 1,000 meters, Fromberger didn't let anything get in the way and secured the top position in front of the defending champion Lia Schievers right from the start. This strategy was mainly based on the forest section with steep elevation gain. The last 400 meters had a descent with different lines and jumps, Fromberger didn't want to get stuck here. “I had the power, I felt good, so I wanted to play it safe. I knew that if, after the climb, I turn into first position on the descent, then it's only down to my skills and I trusted in them," says Fromberger about her sprint final. The race was already over on the home stretch and the new German champion was able to ride her lead safely across the finish line with a smile on her face.
This time it wasn't Simon Gegenheimer in the men's final. The overall World Cup winner and four-time German champion was at the course in Hausach, but decided not to start after a cold. Nonetheless, Nils Riecker, a men's Mountainbike Racingteam rider, was able to fight for the medals. Riecker showed a very focused race and rode tactically clever to the final of the top four. Here, too, the Koblenz rider could be seen riding in third place. Shortly before the end, it was exactly the situation that his teammate was able to avoid, because Riecker was a bit irritated in the scramble and lost his balance when jumping. That ended with landing on the muddy ground and ultimately fourth place.
Racingteam captain Steffen Thum is very happy with his squad: "It's great to see that we can fight for every win even when Simon is sick. We used to have strong leaders, now we are a strong team. Physically and mentally, because Marion in particular was under a lot of pressure. Second place would not have been satisfactory for us in this race with her as the World Cup winner, but she confirmed it and we are moving forward, step by step,” says Steffen Thum, who after the national title fights in Hausach now has one more championship title in his German team holds.
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