Two-wheeler European Cup 2024: Europe's best bike mechanics in the wrench battle

At the beginning of November last year, the best journeymen in the bicycle sector were honoured at the German Craft Skills Two-Wheeler Championships, where the best in their country were chosen from the original seven participants. Steffen Hanel, Lennart Kreft and Pera Jurukovic made it onto the podium, but none of them achieved the minimum number of points required to be crowned national winner.

Hanel and Kreft will represent their country at the European Championships from 15 to 17 February 2024 in the training workshop of the HBZ training centre of the HWK Münster. They will be accompanied and supported by Werner Metzger, Head Master of the Baden-Württemberg Two-Wheeler Mechanics Guild. Metzger already accompanied the German team to Switzerland last year.

European Two-Wheeler Cup: How the European champion two-wheeler mechanic is determined

The best young mechanics in the two-wheeler segment from Germany, France, Denmark, the Czech Republic, Austria, the Netherlands, Poland and Switzerland will be determined at the event in Münster. They will have to prove their craftsmanship and expertise in the competition by solving various tasks and collecting as many points as possible per task. The European champion will be the one with the highest total number of points.

Who are the German candidates?

Before the European Cycling Cup takes place, we spoke to Steffen Hanel from Leonberg (Paul Lange & Co.) and Lennart Kreft from Steinfurt (Velo de Ville), who managed to qualify for the European Championships at the national championships. We wanted to find out from Steffen Hanel what awaits him at the European Championships.

Interview with national winner Steffen Hanel

TOUR: How did it come about that you compete in your apprenticeship?

Steffen Hanel: With my apprenticeship, I wanted to turn my hobby, namely cycling, into a profession. Apparently, I did quite well with my apprenticeship, so I became a chamber winner. That's the first step. If you are then the best of all the chambers in your state, you are the state winner. The next stage is at national level and I also won that competition.

So you automatically qualify for such a competition at the smallest level?

I went to the Chamber of Crafts in Stuttgart, which is available in all regions. At the end of your training, you have to take an exam where you can achieve a maximum of 100 points. The ones with the most points are the chamber winners. The best from the other chambers is then selected. I was invited by letter to take part at national level. And because I was successful there, I was also invited by letter to take part in the European Two-Wheeler Cup.

How does a competition like this work? What do you have to do there?

The best from each of the six federal states was invited to take part in the national competition in Frankfurt. The reason why not one person from each federal state was invited is that you need a certain number of points to qualify. The tasks included e-bike troubleshooting, handlebar tape wrapping and repairing gear hubs. The whole thing was timed. Each task was scored individually, resulting in an overall score at the end, from which the winner emerged.

Is this more of an exam situation or does the whole thing have the character of a competition?

It was more of an exam situation. The six of us were in a room, everyone had their own workstation, there was a start signal and you had 30-45 minutes to complete the tasks until you were told to come to the end. If you finished earlier, you were asked to go outside and then brought back in for the next task.

How many tasks did you have to complete?

There were 5 tasks in the national competition, but I don't know what it looks like in the European Cup. I haven't received much information yet.

View of the European Two-Wheeler Cup

You represent the German team together with Lennart Kreft. Do you work together as a team or is it "every man for himself"?

I mean, there are national rankings as a team and a separate individual ranking.

Are you nervous?

I don't know if I'm nervous. I'm a bit ambivalent, as what I had to do at the national competition had relatively little to do with my day-to-day work, because a lot of things are no longer so current. I also find the thing with the time limit, for example when wrapping the handlebar tape, difficult because I like to take more time there and do it properly.

Does this mean that the format with the time limits should be viewed rather critically?

Not necessarily. After all, you want to find out who can work best under time pressure. But if you really want to know who is the best, you might have to personalise the competition.

What does taking part in the European Two-Wheeler Cup mean to you and what would the title mean to you?

I would be proud if I could win the competition for Germany and, of course, for myself. However, I can't judge the competition at all, partly because I don't know how they are travelling in terms of training. But of course it would be cool if I could bring it home.

More on the subject of bikes & workshops

>> Wrenching tips for racing cyclists

>> Tests, interesting facts and more about bicycle tools

>> Practical mini tools: screwdriver set in check

>> 19 tools for the home bicycle workshop