Tour of France - Late bloomer and Tour debut: What makes sprint hope Bauhaus tick

DPA

· 04.07.2023

Tour of France - Late bloomer and Tour debut: What makes sprint hope Bauhaus tick

Photo: Daniel Cole/AP/dpa

Phil Bauhaus (r) musste sich im Sprint knapp geschlagen geben.

After Marcel Kittel and André Greipel, German fans have been waiting a long time for a top sprinter at the Tour. Phil Bauhaus is now slipping into this role - and he has been there for a long time.

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Phil Bauhaus had to turn 28 for his first Tour de France. But in his very first sprint in the world's most important cycling race, the fast man from North Rhine-Westphalia achieved a remarkable result with second place. "I'm not that well known in Germany," said Bauhaus afterwards. Not yet, one might reply.

Greipel's tracks

Bauhaus has a friendship with Marcel Sieberg. The long-time rider for Germany's most successful sprinter André Greipel did this job for Bauhaus at Team Bahrain. "I owe you a lot. You believed in me every second. I have these three years for the rest of my life," wrote Bauhaus when Sieberg ended his career in 2021.

Completely private

Bauhaus was born in Bocholt on the Dutch border. Because his fiancée Josefine was studying medicine in Cologne and he was a professional cyclist, the couple lived in the Rhine metropolis for seven years. They have now both returned to Bocholt, where Josefine works in the hospital.

Career

Bauhaus got into cycling through his dad, who was a hobby cyclist. The senior got his son an old steel bike that was actually far too big. At first they only cycled for half an hour, then it became more. At some point, he joined the RC 77 Bocholt. Via Team Stölting and the then second-tier Bora team, he was promoted to the WorldTour in 2017 and celebrated his first major victory in the Sunweb jersey at the Critérium du Dauphiné.

Victories

Little Phil rode his first bike race when he was just nine years old, followed by licence races two years later. As a professional, he has won 20 races to date. This is not a particularly high figure for a sprinter of his age, despite his successes at the Dauphiné and Tirreno-Adriatico.

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Bike and speed

Bauhaus rides a Merida Reacto, a streamlined aero racing bike. A normal consumer would have to spend around 12,000 euros for this. For a professional, it's worth it. Bauhaus reaches speeds of up to 70 km/h in flat sprint finals. With the right wind direction, this speed could be reached on Tuesday in the final on the race track in Nogara.

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