National championships: 2xsilver. So close yet so far…
The last week of June is traditionally the time when the national road cycling championships take place in Austria (and most other European countries). There are two main competitions: the individual time trial (ITT, i.e. one rider against the clock) and the road race. For me it was the first important week of racing this year. I’m not a big fan of doing many races, but rather I like to focus on few races for which I try to prepare really well. I did prepare well - I think - but still, I didn’t get the result I wanted.
I had aimed high, wanting to win gold in both the ITT and the road race. To be fair, it wasn’t an outrageous goal. I had won the ITT three times in a row over the last years, and I also thought that I had options in the road race due to the supposedly challenging course.
Well, to make a long story, I lost the ITT by 0.2 seconds. And in the road race I just couldn’t get rid of one rider on the last climb, hence forming a breakaway of two… which for me was the sure way to become second since I cannot sprint.
Two silver medals. It hurt. I had not put in all the hard work over the last months to become second… I really wanted to win. I don’t even know why I had this goal. One might think that being Olympic champion makes a national title less important, but somehow I wanted to wear the colors of my country as the Olympic champion.
Some time has passed since my big disappointment and I can now see many positives: my performance was very good, both physically and equipment-wise, giving me confidence for the next races. The experience of not winning (when I thought I could win) is humbling and challenges me to become even better. And it also enhances the value of the previous victories and potential victories to come. No, it is not normal to win. As athletes we really have to cherish those special moments on the top step of the podium.
PS. At least I know that the national champion jersey is in good hands (or good legs ;)). Our new double national champion Christina Schweinberger is a very deserving winner and I’m looking forward to seeing her in the stripes in the next UCI races!
PPS. One week after the road race I spontaneously decided to participate in the hill climb championships in Tyrol (6km with 550m elevation gain), finally rewarding myself with a gold medal and a rather encouraging result performance-wise (i.e watts).
