No desire for a hobby: Greipel worries about the next generation of cyclists

Former sprint star André Greipel is worried about young talent in German cycling. "You can see a big drop in the starting fields there," the new national road cycling coach told the German Press Agency. "Corona has certainly also been a decisive factor. But the centralisation of the Olympic training centres can also be a problem."

André Greipel sees a fundamental problem

But there is also a fundamental problem, explained Greipel. "You can clearly see that a lot is demanded of children, especially in all-day schools, and many children no longer feel like pursuing a hobby."

However, Greipel does not think that German cycling is in such a bad position at the moment, even though there was no stage win at the Tour de France for the second time in a row and only seven German riders were at the start this time.

Young talent worries André Greipel

"People always look at the world rankings, but I think that's deceptive because we have very good riders who do their job in their teams," said Greipel. Even in the sprint, a matter close to Greipel's heart, Germany still has two professional cyclists of calibre in Phil Bauhaus and Pascal Ackermann. He is more concerned about the junior ranks.

However, it must also be taken into account that the current generation "will meet strong generations from other nations", said the 41-year-old, referring to the abundance of young stars such as two-time Tour winner Tadej Pogacar or world champion Remco Evenepoel.

Greipel has taken over the sporting direction of the road races at the German Cycling Federation. Born in Rostock, he is the most successful German professional cyclist with 158 victories and won bronze in Copenhagen in 2011, the last German medal to date.

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