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"I'm recovering well, I'm keen to train" - Max Schachmann on the way to his old strength
CyclingTuesday, 12 March 2024 at 18:00
BORA - hansgrohe rider Max Schachmann, two-time winner at Paris-Nice (2020+2021), team time-trial world champion and multiple German champion, has almost put a difficult time behind him. His regular training with the team is now going quite well again and he is enjoying racing again.
After his outstanding performance at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, when Schachmann finished the road race just behind a medal position, things went downhill, especially in terms of his health. Like many others, the now 30-year-old suffered from COVID for a long time which had also robbed him of much of his strength. In his title defence at Paris-Nice, to which he had slowly fought his way back in 2022, Schachmann had to retire prematurely when a "March flu" caught him.
"I had the March flu, like many others. Half the riders were ill at the time and I was also hit hard." Nevertheless, Schachmann fought his way back into the peloton and in the summer of the same year he finished in the top 10 at the Tour de Suisse and also achieved a decent result at the Tour de France. Unfortunately, he fell ill with cytomegaly shortly afterwards, which in most cases in cycling leads to the loss of an entire season due to the recovery process.
Schachmann is now healthy again and told Cyclingmagazine.de that he feels well and looks forward to every race. "There's not much missing from my previous level, but that's no longer enough," he says with a laugh. "It has certainly changed me, even if I might not notice it myself. It would be naive to believe that such an experience doesn't change a professional athlete."
Nevertheless, his ambition is still unbridled and so Schachmann puts all his energy into training sessions with BORA - hansgrohe. "My focus is simply on good legs. I want to get there so that I don't break down after 4 hours and play no part in the final. But I'm on the right track, I'm recovering well, I'm keen to train and I'm really looking forward to the altitude training camp," he adds. "Everything has returned to normal. My normal state of mind is good again, even at home. I'm healthy again, I have to ride again. That makes such a difference and brings back my quality of life."
Schachmann also knows that he no longer has anything to prove to anyone, so he says with a clear mind. "I know that I will be judged by my old successes. I've learned from the past two years that I don't need to stand up and say - I'll repeat what I've achieved. I concentrate on the things I can influence, my training, my qualities. Of course I would like to ride races like the Ardennes Classics in top form. That's what I'm working towards. But I'm working on the next step, not the one after that."
Accordingly, he is gradually working his way towards a perhaps new kind of Max Schachmann. "The foundation has been laid, now the last step to the old strength is missing," he concludes.
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