Sprint for a medal

Haller shows off with top result at the Olympics

Marco Haller (center)

(Bild: AFP/Tim De Waele)

While waiting for the second medal for the Austrian Olympic team in Paris, Marco Haller almost got his second bronze unexpectedly on Saturday!

The Carinthian finished sixth in the longest cycling road race in Olympic history, the same time as third place, which is by far the best result of an ÖOC athlete in men's road races three years after Anna Kiesenhofer's Tokyo Olympic victory. As in the time trial, Belgian Remco Evenepoel took gold.

"I just pushed, pushed, pushed!"
"What a place to win this. I'm so proud to be the first to do the double," said the double Olympic champion. "I just pushed, pushed, pushed all the way to the finish line." Already leading solo, the 24-year-old had to overcome a puncture four kilometers before the finish. "I felt really sick from the effort, especially after that stressful moment. I had to change my bike, I was a bit stressed, but I had enough time." Silver and bronze went to French riders with Valentin Madouas (+1:11 min.) and Christophe Laporte (1:16).

Remco Evenepoel

(Bild: Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

"I could have really immortalized myself there!"
After the 273-kilometer distance and a riding time of around 6:20 hours, Haller joined Laporte and five other rivals on the finishing straight on the Trocadero in front of the Eiffel Tower. Julian Alaphilippe, the third-best Frenchman, who ultimately finished in eleventh place nine seconds behind him, had put him slightly off his stride. "Bronze was within reach until 100 meters before the finish," said Haller. "So he had one laughing and one crying eye. "I could have really immortalized myself there. Nevertheless, I'm proud of the way I drove."

The 33-year-old presented himself excellently on the final 50 kilometers with three final laps in the center of Paris and also did some leading work in his group. On the second of three sections of the Montmartre climb, he and others in a leading group could no longer keep up with the pace of the outstanding Evenepoel. However, the Austrian classics specialist with excellent sprinting skills held on brilliantly until the end in the first chasing group of the Belgian, who left his last companion Madouas 15 kilometers before the finish.

"I actually knew that I had to go early!"
While Madouas made it to the finish just ahead of the first chasing group, Haller lost out to Laporte, Attila Valter (HUN) and Toms Skujins (LAT) in the sprint of a septet. However, he left many of the stars and co-favorites such as former world champion Alaphilippe and twelfth-placed Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel behind him on his Olympic debut. This was also due to his tactics: "It was actually clear to me that I would have to go earlier. Because if the big names leave, I probably won't have much of a say."

"It was an absolute Tour de France feeling on the course!"
Felix Großschartner also did well in the unusually small field of only 90 participants, the Upper Austrian finished 26th, 2:20 minutes back. "It's a course that doesn't quite suit me, but I was always there. I'm proud of my performance," said the Upper Austrian. "The result is perhaps not what I had hoped for. But with a bit of luck, you can be just as far ahead. Marco made the right move, which made me really happy. There was an absolute Tour de France feeling on the course, a really cool race."