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In Switzerland they call it “Flying Hirschi” (flying Hirschi). Abroad it is called “Hurricane Hirschi” (cyclone Hirschi). Behold: Marc Hirschi (22) also lives up to his nickname in the World Cup road race. On the one hand, he flies towards the goal, on the other hand, he causes a stir among the favorites. In short: the young Bernese driver is strong again. Receive the reward after almost seven hours and 258 kilometers: the World Cup bronze. “It was a brutally tough race. I think they are all broken. The feeling of having a medal in your hands is much better, ”said Hirschi.
Gold goes to Julian Alaphilippe (28), who is 24 seconds behind the five-man chase group with Hirschi. It is the best on the tough circuit with 5000 (!) Vertical meters. He started as the top seed, «Loulou» attacked 11 kilometers from the finish line on the ascent to Cima Gallisterna. But what does attack mean? Alaphilippe steps on the pedals like there is no tomorrow. “I finally did it. Now I can wear the rainbow jersey. It’s a dream,” he says, crying with happiness.
The Belgian Wout van Aert (26), the Belgian off-roader, came in second. He already took the silver in the time trial. Hirschi has no chance against him in the sprint, that’s clear from the start. Hirschi immediately changes in his head: now it’s about bronze. Hirschi hurts no one but Michal Kwiatkowski (30), the 2014 Polish world champion. It’s a tight box, but Hirschi also keeps a cool head and pushes the front wheel forward with his arms stretched out just before the line. goal, perfect. “Leaping tiger.” Hirschi: «My instincts said it was enough. But I wanted to wait and see. ”A short time later, the end of the photo sets him free.
But wouldn’t there be more than bronze there? Hirschi would have been the first Swiss world champion since Oscar Camenzinds in 1988. “I don’t think so. Alaphilippe was the strongest,” says Hirschi. In fact, the youngster is already only 43 kilometers from the finish, no other Swiss is still there. Hirschi has no choice but to play poker, he does it well, even attacking on the last raise and securing the decisive turning point.
At the end, Hirschi said happily: “This medal means a lot to me. It’s confirmation that I can go to the front. “And does the result qualify?” Right after the stage win on the Tour and the U-23 World Championship title in 2018. “You can feel: Hirschi is great now too. And who knows: if it continues like this, they will soon give it a nickname.
