Matthias Brändle successfully set a new Hour Record of 51.852 kilometres at the World Cycling Centre in Aigle, Switzerland, on Thursday evening.
The 24-year-old Austrian of the IAM Cycling team beat Jens Voigt's mark of 51.115km set on September 18 a few miles away in Grenchen.
At the half-way, half-hour point Brändle was up on Voigt's mark by over 50 seconds and he managed to maintain his advantage despite easing up slightly in the second half of his leg-searing effort.
After the attempt, Brändle admitted that he had suffered a rough patch just after the mid-way point.
"I had a difficult period in the middle of the race, where I suffered," he said. "I had to take a few laps easier, but in the end I could find my rhythm again and bring it to the end."
UCI president Brian Cookson commented on the rousing crowd at the track, which is part of the UCI's headquarters: "It's been absolutely wonderful, a fantastic atmosphere here, a full house. The crowd have been terrific and really got behind Matthias, really helped him. And he's responded with a wonderful performance putting a good few hundred metres on Voigt's record and to set a new standard going forward."
Voigt was quick to congratulate Brändle on his achievement, making light of the 19-year age gap between them.
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"Well - hats off to Matthias, he puts a strong performance in! Congrats to the new Hour Record!! Great to see the young kids going for it," Voigt said via Twitter. "But yes - gotta admit it hurts a little to lose the record, but that's normal, no?! But hey, I never had the illusion of holding it forever."
Although several riders, including Bradley Wiggins, Alex Dowsett and Fabian Cancellara, have shown interest in taking on the Hour Record none has yet set a date. It will now be Brändle that they will have to beat.
Nigel Wynn worked as associate editor on CyclingWeekly.com, he worked almost single-handedly on the Cycling Weekly website in its early days. His passion for cycling, his writing and his creativity, as well as his hard work and dedication, were the original driving force behind the website’s success. Without him, CyclingWeekly.com would certainly not exist on the size and scale that it enjoys today. Nigel sadly passed away, following a brave battle with a cancer-related illness, in 2018. He was a highly valued colleague, and more importantly, an exceptional person to work with - his presence is sorely missed.
