Professional rider Lisa Klein in a TOUR interview - Self-confident family man
Felix Mattis
· 13.03.2020
TOUR Lisa, you started cycling at the age of ten. Why don't you tell us about your childhood in Saarland?
LISA KLEIN: I used to ride motocross with my dad. But then he and my mum wanted to become more sporty, went cycling and bought me a mountain bike too. But everyone at RSC Überherrn was on a racing bike. After my first road race on an MTB, I said: "Dad, that's stupid. I'm at a disadvantage!"
They quickly became ambitious ...
So I was put on a racing bike. We then raced each other, at the very beginning just around a small island of trees. I soon got my own racing bike and started riding first-step races.
You rode motocross, did athletics and danced. But then you quickly specialised in cycling and switched to the sports boarding school at Heinrich-Heine-Gymnasium (HHG) in Kaiserslautern.
I wanted to change schools anyway. Two friends introduced me to Heinrich-Heine-Gymnasium and I signed up for a trial week. After just three days, I called home and said: "Mum, I'm staying here!"
That sounds like it was relatively easy for you to leave home so early?
It wasn't easy to say 'goodbye' on Sundays and it brought tears to my eyes - especially for a family man like me. We are very, very close. Even today, it's an extra incentive for me when my family is at races. So it was a huge step, but in hindsight it was hugely important and the best decision.
What role has the HHG played for you as a cyclist?
That's where it started for me with competitive sport, I realised: Okay, that's what I want to do! I started school in February. In the summer, I became German U15 champion on the road. All the training on the track and road by Mr Mühlfriedel was great. I wasn't necessarily the type to be independent and motivated. The structure of the school helped me a lot.
So Hermann Mühlfriedel, then head of the sports programme at the HHG and U17 national coach, played a big part in how you developed as a cyclist?
Definitely. He introduced me to the world of cycling, gave me nutrition tips, explained training zones and so on. He taught me how to listen to my body. I still benefit from that in training today. I work a lot by feel. But at this age, of course, you also have complex problems outside of sport. That's why I call Mr Mühlfriedel my mentor.
You now live in Erfurt, where you also have a training group and your current coach Michael Beckert lives.
Yes, Erfurt is very important to me in terms of sport. But home is home. I can be myself in Lauterbach and everyone is proud of me - regardless of my performance. It's hardly ever about cycling, I go to the riding stables with my sister or go to the model airfield with my dad, go shopping with my mum. It gives me a lot of strength to relax with my family and to be cooked for by mum. And vice versa, she also visits me in Erfurt - then I cook!
You switched to the Bigla professional team at the age of 18. That was also a bold move ...
When I was approaching my A-levels, I said to Mr Mühlfriedel: I need a professional contract, otherwise I'll quit! I didn't want to join a German Bundesliga team. I knew that wouldn't make sense for my development. It wouldn't have taken me any further. It was clear to me that I wanted to do cycling full-time - or not at all and go to university.
But was the leap in performance from the junior class to the pros too great in the 2015 season?
Definitely. I was also on the verge of quitting after a year. My health wasn't good, I had my heart muscle inflamed. I only stuck with it because I joined the German Armed Forces at the end of the year, had the prospect of the Olympics and those around me believed in me and said that I shouldn't just stop with my talent. But there are many talented athletes who fail to take this big step. There is no U23 class for women, there are no international development teams. Basically, you have to ask yourself: why is there an U23 European Championships but no U23 World Championships? That would be a huge opportunity for young girls to learn.
Even as a junior, you always spoke your mind clearly and confidently and were not as shy and quiet as many juniors are used to. At Bigla, you then met Thomas Campana, the team manager, who was also very opinionated. How did that work out?
There were certainly a lot of differences of opinion and working together wasn't always easy. But he really pushed me on, always motivated me and believed in me. Especially in the time trial, it was always really rock'n'roll over the radio. That was great! But one point of discussion was always that he wasn't a fan of track cycling, but I had my goals there. And I'm a bit stubborn! What's more, my employment with the German Armed Forces is also linked to the track events.
You switched to Team Canyon-SRAM in 2018. Because of the differences surrounding track cycling?
No, I switched because I was convinced that it would take me further. My big goal was to develop in the time trial and as a classics rider. That's why I approached Ronny Lauke (Canyon team boss; editor's note).
You are now a world leader in the time trial - you finished second at the European Championships and fifth at the World Championships in 2019.
A lot of detailed work goes into this. We work a lot with our Performance Director Lars Teutenberg and with Dan Bigham as an aerodynamics expert. I am very happy that there are people who know their stuff so well and I am fully on board and open to all tips. I didn't understand a lot of things at first, but how the suit fits and which helmet you wear is hugely important. People are always trying out new ideas - changing details that help overall.
What is your favourite race?
If I could pick out a single race from the calendar, I would say Flanders. The Ronde is a very cool race for me as a rider, it suits my abilities. You have to be good technically and tactically, I like the cobblestones. But the flair and the spectators are also great. The Tour of Flanders is unique and it would be a huge dream of mine to win it one day.
But you also ride on the track - is that something you want to do or is it more of an obligation because your position in the Bundeswehr's sports promotion group is also linked to it?
After Rio 2016, it was also a commitment for the time being. Before that, I had travelled around the planet the whole time, but hardly got to play - and my development was on hold. It was a disappointment. But when Lisa Brennauer returned to the track in 2017, it quickly became fun again. We now have the best possible line-up. That's why we're making a lot of progress. In the meantime, I would even say that I would always like to return to the track, even without the Bundeswehr.
How much has the accident involving your friend Kristina Vogel, who you describe as a great role model, influenced you as a cyclist?
Her accident (the multiple track world champion Vogel has been paralysed since a training accident in June 2018, editor's note) threw me completely off track. Kristina was one of the first people to visit me in hospital after my accident (Klein was hit by a car in May 2018 and suffered a broken collarbone, editor's note) - and then she got it. It was a difficult year in which I realised how enormously important my environment is to me. Fortunately, Kristina makes it really easy for us - and so the tables turned: I realised how happy I can be just to ride my bike and I've come out of the low all the stronger. Kristina was a kind of indirect mental coach for me.
PROFILE LISA KLEIN
Nationality German
Born 15.7.1996 in
Saarbrücken
Height 1.69 m
Weight 60 kg
Place of residence Erfurt
Professional since 2015
TEAMS
Bigla/Cervélo-Bigla
(2015-2017), Canyon-SRAM (since 2018)
IMPORTANT SUCCESSES
2016 European Championship third individual time trial (EZF)
2017 European Championship bronze medallist EZF, German Road Champion
2018 World champion
Team time trial, European Championship runner-up EZF
2019 Overall victories Healthy Ageing Tour and BeNe Ladies Tour, German Champion EZF, stage victories Thüringen-Rundfahrt and Boels Ladies Tour, European Championship and World Championship runner-up mixed relay, European Championship bronze medallist road, European Championship runner-up EZF; World Championship bronze medallist single pursuit, European Championship runner-up team pursuit
2020 World Championship bronze medallist in team pursuit
2021 Overall victory in the Baloise Ladies Tour
And here it goes Lisa's Spotify playlist
