Published May 20, 2022 04:55AM
Bobby & Jens: Lisa Brennauer wants to see women’s cycling continue to grow
The German rider takes us through her sensational 2021 season and talks about expanding the U23 category to women.
IZU, JAPAN - AUGUST 03: Lisa Brennauer of Team Germany celebrates winning a gold medal during the Women's team pursuit finals, gold medal of the Track Cycling on day eleven of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Izu Velodrome on August 03, 2021 in Izu, Japan. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images) (Photo: Getty Images)
Lisa Brennauer has long been one of the strongest riders in the women’s peloton. But it’s hard to top what she accomplished last year, winning an Olympic gold medal and world champion titles on the track, the German road and time trial national championships and many more podiums and top-10 results. Now with the 2022 season in full swing, she joins Bobby & Jens, taking a look back over that season, and taking stock of the state of women’s cycling.
Big seasons usually don’t just come out of nowhere; there are changes and hard work behind the scenes making it happen. Lisa takes us through what changes she made leading up to that outrageously successful season, and what she attributes her success to. She even credits the pandemic-caused break from racing in 2020 in her journey to winning a year on.
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Perhaps her most impressive feat of 2021 was setting a world record en route to a gold medal at the Olympics. Learn about her preparation leading into the Olympics. “Our coach thought his watch was broken because we were going so fast,” she recalls from her team pursuit squad’s training sessions.
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Having been a pro since 2009, Lisa has grown alongside women’s cycling. She gives her take on the state of the sport, both how far it’s come and where it needs to go. Many things have improved, including the introduction of minimum salaries, allowing more women to make a full time career out of cycling without having to supplement income from other sources. But there’s still a way to go, she says, one of the most pressing needs being a U23 women’s category.
“I think there’s still this improvement ahead of us.”
Listen to this week’s episode for the full discussion.
“Bobby & Jens” is a weekly VeloNews podcast. It stars former pros Bobby Julich and Jens Voigt and features conversations with top athletes, coaches, emerging stars, and other newsmakers from the wide world of cycling. Subscribe now wherever you get your podcasts.
Send your questions to BobbyandJens@VeloNews.com or Tweet @bobbyandjens.