Mountain bike legend Julien Absalon aiming for golden ‘au revoir’ at Rio 2016 Games
Frenchman, considered by many the best of all time, hopes to secure third Olympic title on exciting new course in Deodoro
Absalon tackles the ‘Downtown’ section of the Rio Olympic course during the test event (Rio 2016/Alex Ferro)
Julien Absalon may have felt disappointed to finish fourth at the Rio 2016 mountain bike test event in October. However, on reflection it probably seemed like a good omen. The Frenchman, widely considered the greatest mountain biker of all time, cruised to victory in the London 2012 test event but suffered huge disappointment in the Olympic race, when a first-lap puncture ended his chances of a third-consecutive gold. Now Absalon, currently ranked no.1 in the world, is hoping for a reversal of fortune in Rio.
“Rio is my last big goal, it will be my last race,” said Absalon, confirming that he will retire after the Games, in an exclusive video interview with rio2016.com. “I will stop my career after this.”
Absalon, who will turn 36 shortly before the Rio 2016 mountain bike race, won gold at the Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. He identified Switzerland’s Nino Schurter, the reigning world champion and world no.2 – who also won the Rio 2016 test event – as his main rival for gold in Rio.
Check out the full video interview (click on the cog symbol for English subtitles):
Absalon has travelled the world in a career that has also reaped five world titles and six overall World Cup wins, but he expects the atmosphere in Rio to be extra-special. And he and his fellow riders were full of praise for the new Olympic course in Rio after the test event.
Why the Rio Olympic mountain bike course is so special
Absalon took the chance to visit Christ the Redeemer during his trip to Rio for the test event (Photo: Facebook)
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