World Cycling Championships: "Power in the legs" - Förstemann now top in para-sport

Robert Förstemann still has the thickest thighs. A few weeks ago, his legs were 80 centimetres in circumference during the strength phase, reports the muscleman: "They were bigger than before."

World Cycling Championship 2023: Robert Förstemann and Thomas Ulbricht successful together

The 37-year-old stands out at the World Cycling Championships in Glasgow not only because of his muscle mass, but also because of his sporting successes with his visually impaired partner Thomas Ulbricht. They won bronze on the tandem in the 1000 metre time trial, and the duo is also one of the four best teams in the world in the sprint.

Förstemann, former world champion and Olympic bronze medallist in the team sprint with the professional track cyclists, switched to para-sport a few years ago. As a pilot, he navigates his partner around the wooden oval. "It's more fun now than it used to be," says the Thuringian: "I used to ride on my own, but now I ride with someone else. I've become more of a team player."

Robert Förstemann: "Look more outside the box"

Switching sides has helped him develop as a person. "Para sport also allows me to look beyond my own nose. You realise that many people haven't had it as good in life as we have as competitive athletes. If you can support people and do a bit of good by having a lot of power in your legs, that's a good thing."

Förstemann still has power in his legs - and how! Squats with a barbell weighing more than 250 kilograms on his shoulders - no problem for the family man. You can marvel at the training videos of Quadzilla, his apt nickname, on his Instagram profile. "I've never had as much strength as I do now. We have to accelerate 200 kilos from a standing start and keep going for at least 42 seconds. This is competitive sport at its best," says Förstemann.

Ulbricht can only agree with this. The former track and field athlete is happy to have Förstemann at his side. "Robert is incredibly strong. With his experience, we were also able to prevent a crash," says the visually impaired Ulbricht. He wouldn't have started cycling without him.

Famous for the "huge thighs"

Cycling has always been Förstemann's great passion. He was a member of the German national track cycling team until 2018. He was the lead-out man in the team sprint for a long time, became world champion, European champion and collected national successes. He became really famous at the 2012 Olympics in London, when his huge thighs even made headlines in the yellow press on the island.

The 2024 Olympics as a goal

The Olympics is still the goal, now it's the Paralympics in disability sport. In Paris 2024, the duo wants to win a medal over the 1000-metre distance. "Next year we want to get under a minute. That has to be the goal for Paris," says Ulbricht. They have gradually narrowed the gap to the British, and in Glasgow it was just seven tenths of a second.

>> The TOUR liveblog on the World Cycling Championships in Glasgow

But before that, they still have to qualify. "We've won a medal at each of the last two World Championships. Now we have another World Championships in Rio in March. If we win another medal there too, we'll definitely be there," explains Förstemann. He will continue to train hard for the big goal. His thighs are his greatest asset.

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