Double Olympic champion celebrates her cycling comeback

Incredible scenes took place yesterday, 21 June, at the Eurobike in the Frankfurt exhibition hall.

Incredible scenes took place yesterday, 21 June, at Eurobike in the Frankfurt exhibition hall. Kristina Vogel is part of Eurobike 2023 and did her first laps on her new bike yesterday in Hall 8 at the HP-Velotechnik stand.

The top athlete had a serious training accident in 2018 and has been paralysed ever since. Yesterday, she celebrated her comeback and was presented with her new bike live at the trade fair. Since her serious accident during training five years earlier, the 17-time world champion has been frequently featured in the press despite the very difficult time. She even received the award for Germany's most bike-friendly personality of the year, but was no longer able to sit in the saddle herself at the time.

That changed yesterday! Cycling legend Kristina Vogel is hopefully finally back in cycling herself. At Eurobike, she was presented with her first handbike by the company HP-Velotechnik. The Hands-On-Cycle handbike is supported by high-end SHIMANO shifting technology and paves the way for the athlete to continue pursuing her passion, albeit in a different way than before.

The track cycling superstar achieved several successes as a teenager. Even before she reached the age of 18, she was not only two-time European champion, but also six-time world champion. In 2009, she had a serious accident and suffered several fractures. Thanks to her fighting spirit and extremely strong will, she fought her way back into cycling, celebrating her comeback just one year later and winning her first World Cup at the same time. Her performance at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, where she lost her saddle in a sprint competition but still managed to secure the Olympic gold medal, was particularly memorable.

The handbike from HP-Velotechnik takes Kristina Vogel one step closer to cycling again. Even after her accident, she remained involved in cycling and in the media. She commented and presented for ZDF and Eurosport, for example, and was an ambassador for the 2020 Track Cycling World Championships in Berlin. However, she hasn't ridden a bike for quite a while now. For this reason, yesterday was a very special day for the top athlete.

Photo HP Velotechnik