New challenger! After Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, also Marathon MTB World champion sets out in search of glory on road in 2025: "I want to be the best in the world"

Cycling
Tuesday, 31 December 2024 at 09:00
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Following the example of XCO Olympic Champion Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, another top-tier mountain-biker Mona Mitterwallner will transition to road in 2025. Despite being only 22-year-old, Mitterwallner is already a three-time world champion in marathon mountain biking, showcasing her ability to perform in long races with plenty of climbing. Next year, the Austrian will make a professional road debut with Human Powered Health.

"I want to be the best in the world, so I've always said that the road is going to be part of my future. That's always been on the radar. After the Games I wanted to try something new and get out of my routine, so I'm curious to see how much I can improve as a rider. I needed a new challenge," says Mitterwallner, who believes that she can become a top climber in a press release from her new team.

"On a mountain bike you climb for two or three minutes, but on the road it can easily be longer than an hour. I want to try that and I think I can be good at it too. I am used to going over my limit, but hopefully that is also something I can do in longer races. I also have good cycling skills from mountain biking, so I hope I will be among the ten percent in the descents. And I am explosive," she describes herself as a road cyclist for Human Powered Health.

"I'm really looking forward to the multi-day races. I'm good at repeated efforts over several days, but that's not something you see a lot in mountain biking. Racing full throttle for a week is something really cool and I want to see if I really recover as quickly as I think," says Mitterwallner, who as a young girl also did volleyball, hockey, ballet breakdance and is now a DJ in addition to cycling.

"We are very happy with her arrival for her debut season on the road. Her great results in mountain biking show how incredibly talented and determined she is," says Ro De Jonckere, the manager of the team. "That she has achieved so much at her age in one of the most demanding disciplines shows her strength and perseverance," he continues. "We are very much looking forward to supporting her in her transition to the road and are confident that with her mentality and versatility she will be able to cope well in the peloton."

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