Anton Palzer swaps skis for a racing bike - Bora-Hansgrohe signs German ski mountaineer

"It may seem like a risky endeavour," team manager Ralph Denk explained the unusual transfer in a press release. "There is certainly a certain amount of risk involved, but we have been following Toni for some time and are convinced of his physical abilities. Examples such as Roglic or Woods show that such an experiment can also work, and we have always said that we scout in different sports. I'm not saying that Toni will be racing for the Tour victory in two years' time. But we see a lot of potential in him, especially in the high mountains. In the summer, he spent a week training on the bike with a few of our lads in Austria, which went very well and he is also good technically. Our interest was then aroused and we realised that Toni was looking for a new challenge. In the end, he won us over with his enthusiasm and professionalism. At the beginning of the season, we will be using him more in difficult one-day races and mountainous week-long tours. There he will have to learn how cycling works and, above all, take on tasks for the team. We'll see where the journey takes him from there, but we'll take it step by step."

Quotes from the press release:

Anton Palzer
"Professional cyclist - for a long time that was just a thought at the back of my mind. A small dream that seemed unattainable and far from my reach. The decision to embark on a new sporting career only matured during my contact with Bora-Hansgrohe and through intensive discussions with the team. From a sporting point of view, I have to slowly grow into cycling, develop a certain racing intelligence and also deal with the challenge of a double season (winter and summer) in the first year. My strengths certainly lie in the high mountains - but as the routes into the mountains are often flat and windy, I certainly still have a lot to learn here!"

Hellmut Dollinger, Coach Team Bora-Hansgrohe
"Toni approached me this spring with the question of whether I could help him prepare for the World Ski Mountaineering Championships. We've been working together since April and it quickly became clear that some of his values, such as his VO2max, are already exceptional. He trains a lot on the bike in the summer anyway, so we looked at the data in detail. However, the decisive factor for the switch was that Toni really wanted to give it a go. The potential is there, but data isn't everything, you also have to put the horsepower on the road. In any case, it will be an exciting project. It will be a particular challenge to make the transition from his last competitive season in winter to his first bike races. In general, however, you have to keep your head down anyway and use the first season to learn. Then you can see better what could be possible."