From narrow skates to fast tyres: in 2024, former speed skater Lennart Jasch competed in his first cycle race. Since mid-2026, he has been part of the Tudor Cycling Team’s professional squad and has already won several high-profile races, including the general classification of the Tour de Langkawi. In this interview, he talks about his experience of making the switch to cycling and how he explains his surprising successes
TOUR: Mr Jasch, your story sounds too surreal to be true: two and a half years ago you were still a speed skater; now you’re 25 years old and a professional cyclist who wins races – and very tough ones at that. How do you view this development?
JASCH: Sometimes I have to give myself a shake to realise what’s actually happening to me. I really am a professional cyclist now. About a year ago, I last had my skates on, together with a friend who was desperate to go to an ice rink with me. But that was just a bit of fun sliding about. For me, cycling is now the main focus.
TOUR: You’ve put a great deal of effort into your career as a speed skater – how far have you got during that time?
JASCH: I live in Chiemgau, not too far from Inzell, the national training centre for speed skating. However, the fact that I decided to give this sport a go wasn’t down to the proximity to Inzell. It was always on the cards, as I come from a family of speed skaters. My parents were speed skaters; my father, Helge Jasch, was even the national coach and is now the team manager. And my sister, Maira, came eighth in the 5,000 metres at the Winter Olympics in Milan in February. That was my favourite distance too. Although I was in the national team, I never managed to make my big international breakthrough. I was never selected for a World Cup race.
TOUR: Was the realisation that you wouldn’t make it to the very top in speed skating also a reason for you to switch sports?
JASCH: In speed skating, 80 per cent of training consists of cycling. Even during my last season on the ice, I cycled 20,000 kilometres. That’s the basic training; we’ve moved the interval and high-intensity training onto the ice.
I’ve always been interested in cycling. Even as a sport on the telly, the Tour de France has always fascinated me, as have many other races.
During performance tests on the bike, it became clear that my results were very good. That’s when the question arose as to whether I might want to give cycle racing a go. I hesitated because, as a speed skater, I wanted to make it to the Olympic Games. I regarded cycling as very dangerous. That’s why I didn’t dare to compete in races. I thought: if you crash in the summer and break something, the winter season could be over in a flash. But then came a turning point – that was at the end of 2023.
TOUR: What exactly happened there?
JASCH: I was suffering from an imbalance on the ice. My left leg was weaker than my right. But I only noticed this on the ice. It wasn’t a problem when I was cycling. I saw lots of doctors, but none of them could really help me. In November 2023, my coaches asked me to do interval training on the bike as part of my rehabilitation so that I could stay fit. I did that, on the roller. I then had a look for races on the Zwift platform and came across the Zwift Academy. After a few sessions, I received an email from the Academy. They were amazed by my performance figures and sent me a questionnaire; they wanted to find out more about me. I thought to myself: if my stats are obviously good, I’d like to know how they compare to those of professional cyclists. And whether it might actually make sense to switch sports. And then I got really lucky.
TOUR: In what way?
JASCH: Manfred Düring, the director of my rehabilitation centre, said he knew someone who could help. He’d try to put us in touch. A week later, Manfred sent me a WhatsApp message with Dan Lorang’s contact details; he was the performance manager at Bora-hansgrohe at the time. He told me to get in touch with him; Dan knew what was going on. My first thought was: What? Get in touch with Dan Lorang? I was absolutely thrilled. But I did get in touch with him.
TOUR: Dan Lorang is always keen to meet athletes with top-class credentials. How did he respond to your cover letter?
JASCH: He was very friendly. He wanted to get to know me. I did a Power Profile test with him. Dan then told me that my wattage figures would definitely be enough to ride on the World Tour. But that’s only part of the cycling project. Dan told me: ‘You’ve got to learn everything, especially how to ride in the peloton.’ But he advised me to start racing. And I was ready for it. Winter was now over; it was spring 2024, and I thought to myself: if cycling doesn’t work out, I can always go back to the ice.
TOUR: So what happened next?
JASCH: I tried to find a team. But it didn’t work out. Who’s going to take on a complete rookie, especially after pre-season training? So I got an amateur licence. Before that, the lads at my club, RSV Irschenberg, had explained to me how things work in cycling: licences, registering for races, riding in the peloton, the rules and so on. My first road race was the Zusmarshausen Grand Prix in May 2024. I came second straight away. That earned me the chance to prove myself with the Max-Solar Cycling Team, and from May onwards I rode a whole host of races for that team.
The Tour of Upper Austria in June 2024 was the first UCI race I took part in. I finished tenth in the general classification.
Tim Meeusen, a scout for Bora-hansgrohe, noticed this shortly before Red Bull came on board with the team. Tim then wanted to take a look at my profile and realised: nothing, blank, no entry. Where would it have come from? I was, after all, a complete newcomer. That piqued Tim’s curiosity. I was subsequently tested at the Red Bull Performance Centre. My performance must have made an impression, because shortly afterwards I received an offer to ride for Red Bull’s development team in 2025. I gratefully accepted.
TOUR: So what was it like for you, as a rookie, racing in the peloton? Up against riders who’ve been doing this sport since they were little?
JASCH: Up until then, I’d only ever seen cycling on the telly. I could get my head round the tactics. But I’d never actually experienced anything like that live on the road. I was absolutely nervous during my first few races. I just didn’t want to get anything wrong. I just didn’t want to make a fool of myself. But I always asked lots of questions and got lots of good answers. And at some point, it all clicks and you’ve got the hang of it. I’d say that I’ve now got the hang of cycling and can get through races without making any major mistakes. Even though, of course, there’s still plenty I can learn.
TOUR: In 2026, you joined Team Tudor Pro Cycling. And there, you became a winner.
JASCH: That sounds rather far-fetched. But somehow, it’s true. Tudor’s offer won me over. I was initially part of the development team there, too – until the end of May.
TOUR: At the end of April, you won a stage of the gruelling and star-studded Tour of the Alps whilst riding for Tudor, and later went on to win the mountains classification as well. Did that surprise even you?
JASCH: Absolutely. I was completely gobsmacked and speechless. That victory came completely out of the blue, even for me. Then, at the start of June, I was promoted from the development team to the pros. That was incredible for me. I could feel it: the hard work was paying off, and my self-doubts had vanished. This isn’t just a hobby any more – it’s my job. I’m a professional now and I earn my living from cycling. It’s still hard to take in.
TOUR: You continued to make a name for yourself. At the end of June, you finished second – narrowly beaten – at the German Championships. Prior to that, you finished 16th in the gruelling Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. And in mid-September, you surprised even yourself by claiming a stage victory on a gruelling mountain stage at the highly competitive Giro d’Abruzzo. Did it become clear to you then that you’d made your mark in your sport?
JASCH: That was, and still is, completely mad to me. I only realised I’d won when I was sitting there for the winner’s interview and saw the results list:
What? Me? Won? Here? It’s surreal! Over the past few weeks, I’ve woken up every now and then and had to check my mobile straight away to make sure it had all really happened: that I’m a professional who’s won races.
I always feel a weight lift off my shoulders when I’m certain: it really is true. It wasn’t a dream.
TOUR: You recently won a stage in Malaysia and the entire Tour de Langkawi, adding two more victories to your tally. Do you see yourself as a stage racer?
JASCH: Langkawi was yet another new experience. It was the first time I’d been the leader of my team. I felt very confident there and certainly believed in my own abilities. I told myself: at the end of the day, it’s all about winning here. But am I a stage racer now? That’s still up in the air, I’d say. At the Tour of the Alps, I was in a breakaway group. In Abruzzo, I attacked late on. In Malaysia, I was able to control the race. These are different approaches, so in that sense: I’m curious myself to see where this journey takes me. But I’d certainly be tempted to become a general classification rider.
TOUR: Athletes from other disciplines have already gone on to become very good cyclists before you. Take Primož Roglič, for example – he used to be a ski jumper. Or Florian Lipowitz, who started out as a biathlete. Why is cycling so well suited to athletes switching disciplines?
JASCH: Any child can ride a bike. That’s the starting point. Compared to speed skating, cycling is a less technical sport. Who can actually speed skate? It’s very difficult to learn a sport that requires such a high level of coordination. Like me, Florian has always cycled a lot as a foundation for his sport. Florian and I have always been endurance athletes. So you’ve already got that in you. That might make the switch easier.
TOUR: Do you already have any idea which races are planned for you in 2027?
JASCH: No. I’m happy to wait and see. But one thing is clear: I want to keep improving. That’s only possible if we analyse our mistakes. This sort of review is very important to me. If we manage to do that, I’ll be able to take another step forward next season.
But one thing is clear: I definitely want to compete in a Grand Tour at some point in my career.
The Tour de France might still be a bit too much for me. But I already feel confident enough to tackle the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta. A Grand Tour like that is the toughest thing you can do in this sport, which is already tough and full of hardships. I can imagine that the experience of having got through something so gruelling would give you a whole new perspective on life.
TOUR: Is there a race that you’re determined to win at some point in your career?
JASCH: I only just missed out on victory at the German Championships this year. I’d love to experience that success one day. It’s a very special race, especially because afterwards you get to wear the German Champion’s jersey for a whole year. For me, it’s the finest jersey in the entire peloton. It would be an absolute honour to be allowed to wear a jersey like that.
Lennart Jasch – About him
Nationality German
Born 14 November 2000 in Prien
Teams
Max Solar Team (2024); Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe (development team, 2025); Tudor Pro Cycling (2026, development team until the end of May, then in the pro team; contract until 2028)
Key achievements
Four victories to date as a cyclist: one stage of the Tour of the Alps; one stage of the Giro d’Abruzzo; one stage and the general classification of the Tour de Langkawi (all in 2026)
Biography
In his first sporting career, Lennart Jasch was a speed skater from 2011 to 2024. His preferred events were the long-distance races and the mass start. Due to an imbalance (his left leg was weaker than his right), he was no longer able to compete in speed skating in the autumn of 2023. To stay in shape, he took to the roller and completed interval training on the bike. His performance figures were outstanding. Jasch was put in touch with the renowned coach Dan Lorang, who eventually advised him to try his hand at cycling. After a year’s apprenticeship with Max Solar starting in May 2024, Jasch made the leap to the Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe development team, before moving to Tudor Pro Cycling at the start of this year. There, he was offered his first professional contract in June.
