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After the World Cup finals in Canada, the mountain bike world agreed: now it is time to go on holiday after an exhausting season. But while it feels like the entire cycling scene is taking place on the beach, Joel Roth, 24, is doing something completely different at the start of winter break: he’s cycling – more than he’s done all year.
Roth was planning a monster ride. On the two-wheeler from his Aargau home Kölliken to Porto. “I just really enjoy cycling. And I have never been to Portugal,” Roth tells Blick. About 2000 km with muscle power in six days. That is more than 300 km per day.
A year ago I cycled to Barcelona
Roth got a taste of it a year ago. He was already on a tough tour in the style of trendy bikepacking (multi-day trips with little luggage). «I then drove 1000 km to Barcelona. I really enjoyed it. And because I still felt very fresh in Barcelona, I looked for a destination further away this time,” says the cycling professional of the Swiss Bixs racing team.
So while his World Cup colleagues put their feet up, Roth kicks away. All alone. The navigation system shows him the direct route through the country.
The trip is a different kind of relaxation program for the man from Aargau, who stood out at the 2023 World Cup with a 10th place in Les Gets. “Of course it is not relaxing for the body. But for the head. You really switch off, you are completely in the here and now. There is something meditative about it,” says the 2020 European U23 champion. “And the break in the season is still long enough for physical recovery.”
Aborted in France due to knee pain
But then, after riding some 450 miles, Roth was somewhere in the middle of France when his knee gave out. ‘It started to hurt. I took a few breaks, but I could hardly go uphill,” says Roth.
He comes to a pragmatic conclusion: cancel the cycling adventure. As a cycling professional, he doesn’t want to risk his health for a fun ride. He takes the train via Paris to Switzerland. Portugal will have to wait.
Source : Blick
I’m Emma Jack, a news website author at 24 News Reporters. I have been in the industry for over five years and it has been an incredible journey so far. I specialize in sports reporting and am highly knowledgeable about the latest trends and developments in this field.
