After their almost unbelievable triumph, the German track cyclists could hardly get out of the cheering while still on the bike. The gold medal, plus this world record run: the German four-wheel track cyclist ensured a historic success in the team pursuit. It was the first Olympic victory for a German women’s team in the supreme discipline of track cycling, and in an inimitable way. “I am positively surprised myself that it has now exploded like this,” said national coach Andre Korff: “It comes about because the girls are now in the right season. In the summer season they can really make use of their potential.”
In the run-up to the event, the German quartet had once again set a world record. In the surprisingly one-sided final, Lisa Brennauer, Franziska Brauße, Lisa Klein and Mieke Kröger then left another world record, the third overall, less than two hours later in 4: 04.242 minutes, leaving Great Britain, Olympic champions of 2016, behind. They won the first gold medal for the Association of German Cyclists (BDR) at the competitions in the Izu Velodrome.
“Oh my God, in what a time. I would never have thought that this was in the girls at all. Probably neither a few months ago,” said the two-time Olympic champion Kristina Vogel in her role as ZDF expert: “It it is fantastic what a performance they have done. It is unbelievable. “
The third German world record in the third race
That is exactly what the four German women had imagined before. “You can always dream,” Brennauer said the day before when she and her teammates undercut the five-year-old world record of Great Britain by almost three seconds. But it shouldn’t last long. In the run-up on Tuesday, Great Britain first undercut the German record, then the German team countered again in 4: 06.159 minutes.
In the final in front of several hundred spectators, there was a direct duel between the two top nations, in which Germany had the greater reserves of strength and even went one better: The lead at the finish was an unbelievable 6.365 seconds. Bronze went to the USA.
In the team pursuit, in which women have only been able to win Olympic medals in London since 2012, a German women’s team has never been able to win precious metal. The German team trumped the disappointing record of the 2016 games with their success on the second day of the competition.
In Rio de Janeiro, the BDR only won one gold and one bronze medal, in Izu, which is located far outside Tokyo, the team sprint won the Olympic gold medal for Lea-Sophie Friedrich and Emma Hinze as well as the silver medal. More precious metals are to follow: The German team will probably only play a minor role in the men’s team pursuit on Wednesday, but on Thursday Hinze in the Keirin and Roger Kluge want to strike again in the all-around Omnium.
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