The talented German cyclist Justyna Czapla narrowly missed out on a medal in the U23 race at the World Championships in Montreal. Despite a convincing performance, the Polish-born rider finished ninth after 134 kilometres. Gold went to Slovakia’s Viktoria Chladonova, who crossed the line 1 minute and 16 seconds ahead of Czapla. Canada’s Isabella Holmgren took silver ahead of Fleur Moors from Belgium.
“I’d hoped for a podium finish, but it just wasn’t to be. In the end, the others were too strong for me to close the gap. I can be satisfied with my performance,” said Czapla.
No strength left at the end
For a long time, the German team rode very attentively, shielding captain Czapla from the wind and closing any gaps. However, around 30 kilometres from the finish, the trio of favourites – Holmgren, Chladonova and Moors – broke away. Czapla was unable to keep up, but remained in the chasing group.
On the first long climb of the final lap, Czapla briefly lost touch with the pack. That was the decisive moment for the 22-year-old to potentially get back into the medal race after all. “I didn’t have the legs to keep up there. We went flat out right to the end, but couldn’t close the gap,” said Czapla.
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