Voigt Looking Forward to Deutschland Tour
30.05 08:46
Last week Team CSC's Jens Voigt took the overall victory in Bayern Rundfahrt, and on Monday he will be the team captain in Deutschland Tour (Tour of Germany).
"The Bayern victory really came as a big surprise to me. I'd just returned to Europe, stepped off the plane on Sunday after a 20 hour flight. On Monday I was completely jet-lagged and then I tried to give myself a wake-up call on Tuesday by doing some intervals, but I just felt so bad," Voigt explains.
The race started Wednesday, and fortunately for Jens Voigt one of the decisive stages - the time trial - was in the evening.
"My legs were killing me in the first stage on Wednesday, but the time trial was around 6pm, which was about the exact same time, I used to start training with Bobby (Julich) in the States, so I guess that's why I was able to finish second."
In the time trial Voigt was only beaten by Michael Rich, who had won the race twice in a row.
"Rich looked so strong, and everyone thought he would win again, but then on Saturday he exploded during the climbs. It was raining, and he's at his best when it's hot and sunny, whereas I don't mind a bit of cold weather from time to time," says Voigt.
Despite the victory in Bayern Rundfahrt, Voigt is still not sure about his chances in the upcoming Deutschland Tour.
"Usually I would get a 10-15% better effect from the altitude training once the jet-lag completely wears off. This means, I should be flying in the Deutschland Tour, but after my results in Bayern, I'm not so sure anymore. I'll probably do my best ever or totally explode," Voigt says with a big smile on his face.
The German rider enjoyed his recent training camp in Reno, Nevada with team mate and good friend Bobby Julich.
"The first week we took it easy and tried to recover from a tough spring season. I knocked around some golfballs for the first time in my life, and Bobby tried to teach me how to gamble in the casinos. He was quite good, but I just lost money. It's a beautiful scenery, where he lives and we were lucky in terms of weather with only one cold, rainy day, where we had to cancel the training."
Going in to the Deutschland Tour, Voigt knows the competition will be much harder than in Bayern Rundfahrt.
"T-Mobile and Gerolsteiner have some really strong riders in their line-ups, and then you have guys like Galdeano and Bettini. The first stage time trial in Karlsruhe will be crucial just as the long climb in St. Anton and the steep Fichtelberg climb, where the race will probably be decided once and for all," predicts Voigt, who hopes for a spot on the podium.
Deutschland Tour - official website
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