The man has a figure like a lighthouse. Tall and hard to shake. Probably more stable than the Colossus of Rhodes. On this day in June, Marcel Sieberg, 1.98 metres tall former pro, is accompanying the road race at the German Championships as sporting director when, despite his Westphalian equanimity, he admittedly loses his balance a little - at least internally. He sees how his protégé Marco Brenner goes on the offensive early in the race for the German road race championship - far too early, Sieberg thinks. After around 20 of 200 kilometres, Brenner takes off with four others on the circuit around Bad Dürrheim. "He's still a bit playful," Sieberg would later say. But in the end, Brenner did everything right, took apart the rivals from the actually overpowering Team Bora-Hansgrohe with his riding style and then stamped their strongest remaining representative at the front, the strong climber Florian Lipowitz, as the loser on the last steep ramp in Aasen with an energetic attack in just a few metres.
Sieberg's fears turned out to be unfounded. But the DM race was seen internally as a great opportunity: Brenner and those around him knew that he was in the form of his life, had set personal records at the Tour de Suisse, had achieved a good result with 19th place overall, but not an outstanding one and, above all, one that was easy to sell. In short, that day was all about gilding the talent.
Comparisons with Jan Ullrich are ballast
In the end, it worked - thanks to a mixture of instinct, almost cocky aggression and pure strength. Finally, many will say, finally, Brenner himself agrees: "I had hoped that I would make the step faster," he admits. It was the culmination of his cycling year 2024, which marked his breakthrough as a professional cyclist. At last? At 21, Brenner is the youngest winner of the elite race since 2005, when Gerald Ciolek celebrated as an 18-year-old. Even as a teenager, the Augsburg-born cyclist had to live with the public attention triggered by the news that he had delivered results in the Bund Deutscher Radfahrer performance tests that had previously only been seen in Jan Ullrich at the same age.
The test results were both a great promise and a burden in equal measure. In view of the expectations and comparisons with the only German Tour de France winner, Brenner always appeared relaxed. Outwardly. The results are an indication of great talent, but no guarantee of victories at world level. However, the late developer Brenner, who by his own admission gained two centimetres in height in the winter of 2023/24, took a little longer than Antonio Tiberi, for example, who was once the junior world champion in the individual time trial and only 13 seconds ahead of the bronze medallist Brenner, but this year finished fifth overall in the Giro d'Italia and has already arrived at the top of the world rankings. "Getting to that level takes time. The difference in performance between juniors and men is huge," emphasises Brenner's coach Sebastian Deckert. And requires patience. You have to know that: Brenner was not only talented, but also always impetuous and wanted a lot very quickly. The race and its course in Bad Dürrheim somewhat mirrored his career - only this time he was rewarded for his impetuousness. "Everything came together at the DM. It's mega cool when you get the championship jersey from your sponsor," says Brenner about the greatest moments of his career so far.
New team, new luck for Marco Brenner
Why the breakthrough now? "He now has a different environment, which is positive. He's someone who needs to feel comfortable," emphasises Sieberg, who is now his sporting director at Tudor Pro Cycling Team and, like Brenner, previously worked at Team DSM. "I got a better role at Tudor. I couldn't have done anything better," says the professional cyclist about his move to Tudor at the start of the season, adding: "This team places a lot of value on people and on the opinions of the athletes." Last year, the relationship between Brenner and Team DSM, which once wanted him at all costs and lured him to the Netherlands as an 18-year-old from the Bora-hansgrohe U19 team, broke down. "If you think about it, it wouldn't have done me any harm if I'd ridden another year in the U23s. But I also learnt so much," says the young professional cyclist.
A team in which he feels comfortable, new continuity after persistent back problems, personal happiness in Andorra, the continuation of a continuous development that is not visible to everyone - according to his companions, these were the reasons why Brenner was able to celebrate his first two professional victories in the 2024 season. Firstly, in March on a stage of the Settimana Coppi e Bartali - since his impressive performance in Bad Dürrheim, he has been able to race in the black, red and gold champion's jersey for a year, a very visible proof of his abilities.
Potential for the big stage races
And what happens next? Brenner is due to ride another Grand Tour next year and work on his skills as a classics rider, presumably at the Giro d'Italia. He can climb well, thanks to his weight of around 61 kilos and height of 1.80 metres. He will work on his time trial potential, says coach Deckert. And what is possible in the long term? "He's on the right track. He's a man for smaller tours. Riding at the front in the Tour de France will be difficult," Sieberg surmises. Difficult, but not impossible? The coming year will show which direction one of Germany's greatest talents will take. Marco Brenner has known what he wants for a long time. Now everyone knows that he can do it.
Andreas Kublik
Editor
