Stefan Tabeling, dpa
Lennard Kämna had to have a mask in his luggage. Because shortly before the Giro d'Italia, the corona alarm is back in cycling.
"I'm definitely still flying with a mask and avoiding the risk of catching the virus. But I'm not living in absolute isolation now," Kämna told the German Press Agency ahead of the start in Fossacesia Marina.
Only on Wednesday, top favourite Primoz Roglic lost two important helpers due to corona. And the Italian Giulio Ciccone, captain of the Trek team, also had to withdraw after an infection. Emanuel Buchmann from Kämna's Bora-hansgrohe team was most recently affected by corona.
Kämna is ready for the Giro project
No unpleasant setbacks, because everything has gone according to plan for Kämna so far this year: his weight is at the lower limit, his form is at a top level and his anticipation is huge. The highly talented rider from Fischerhude is ready for his big Giro project and wants to finish in the top ten at a Grand Tour for the first time. Or is there much more in it? Maybe even the pink jersey? "If I get the chance and it works out somewhere like that, then definitely, but that's not my expectation," said Kämna.
The former junior world champion, who has already won high mountain stages at the Tour de France (2020) and the Giro (2022), doesn't want to put himself under pressure. After all, he has undergone a transformation this season, from stage hunter to classics rider. He wants to know what his body is capable of. Team boss Ralph Denk from Bora-hansgrohe believes in the 26-year-old's huge potential. "He's a free spirit on the bike," said the Bavarian, who is very happy with Kämna: "He's doing very well. He is very focussed."
This was not always the case in the past. Twice in three years, Kämna had to take a longer mental break. "When you take a break and think about a few things, thoughts like "Are you going to stop doing sport?" come up. But not really. You're not done with it yet. You've never done this sport 100 per cent," Kämna recently reported in a documentary on NDR.
Kämna and Wlassow share the captain's role
Since then, he has made some adjustments to his life. Kämna has moved to Lochau on Lake Constance, where he lives with his girlfriend Ria Schwendinger, a former figure skater. He has also sought the help of a psychologist. He now seems to be much more balanced.
This is also how Kämna coped with the many hardships during the long preparation for the Giro - including two altitude training camps on Tenerife and in the Sierra Nevada. "I tried to enjoy the road to the Giro a little and to see it as a kind of experience, as a good time. I was already aware that it's five months where you're not at home much, but you can make the time in the training camp nice," says Kämna, who shares the captain's role in the Bora-hansgrohe team with the Russian Alexander Vlasov.
This has already worked well in the smaller tours Tirreno-Adriatico and Tour of the Alps. Kämna, who weighs just under 65 kilograms at 1.81 metres tall, finished fourth and sixth in the overall standings. He also won a mountain stage in the Alps. What is still missing from a Roglic or a Remco Evenepoel (Belgium), the two big favourites for overall victory in the Giro? A few per cent, says Kämna: "We'll see how big the gap to Roglic or Evenepoel is. I hope that it's very small and that I can play a bit of a role in the Giro."
Perhaps already at the start of his speciality discipline, the time trial. More than 70 kilometres against the clock in three time trials are to the taste of the German champion. But the Giro will be decided in the mountains with more than 50,000 metres of climbing.
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