World champion Franziska Brausse missed her colleagues from the gold foursome in Tokyo a little during her celebration tour in the Olympic Velodrome.
“It’s almost nicer to win with the team, because you’re on the podium with the girls and you can be happy as a team,” said Brausse after winning the title at the track cycling world championships in the 3000 meter individual pursuit.
With the women’s four, Brausse had rushed into the limelight in the past two years. Olympic champions, world champions and European champions – to top it off, Brauße, Lisa Brennauer, Lisa Klein and Mieke Kröger were honored as team of the year at the athletes’ gala.
Moving moments that Brauße wants to experience again soon. “Hopefully, the success story is only interrupted,” said the 23-year-old, hoping for the return of Klein, who is in poor health, and the injured Olympic reserve driver Laura üßmilch. “Then we’ll hopefully be back at the front again.” At the World Championships in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, the changed team was not yet ready for a medal.
So this time Brausse had to race to gold alone, completing the medal set after bronze in Berlin in 2020 and silver in Roubaix in 2021. “To be at the top alone at a world championship, to take over the title from Lisa Brennauer, is special for me,” said Brausse.
