We hoped, but we didn’t dare to imagine it. But János did it! Team United Shipping’s specialist won the Hungarian National Time Trial Championship. The chrono was held between Bocskaikert and Debrecen. János beat Attila Valter by 36 seconds and Barnabás Peák by two minutes. This is János Pelikán’s third time trial championship title, but 8 years and many twists and turns have passed since his previous success.
In the U23 category, Zétény Szijártó from our team was also there. He finished 5th in his category.
Words from the Fresh Hungarian Champion:
It’s hard to say how important the training camp was to my victory, but I spent a lot of time there on the time trial bike. I also used my roller a lot in the accommodation and did ‘heat training,’ riding in a hot room. I think that helped a lot because I didn’t feel like I was cooking. I was able to do 400 watts for two minutes at high altitude and I was crunching as hard as if I had done 500 watts at sea level. Because of that, I didn’t know exactly what watts to expect for the time trial, but I did a race simulation right before we went to Italy. At the time, I averaged around 403 watts, so I thought that if I could do this much at high altitude, I could be good for the nationals.
Honestly, I started to get really nervous this morning, so it was good that my coach sent me out for an hour on the road in the morning. I thought my legs were good, but I was nervous the whole time. My heart rate was high, which could have been a bad thing, but the watts came. I took it a little slower in the second half of the first lap, and then it was all in the last lap. The gap between Ati and I was pretty much established at the beginning, and it grew a little more at the end.
Am I feeling emotionally about the Hungarian championship title? Well, I say it’s good. I’m happy that I managed to win after so many years, but it’s also really nice that Ati and Barna were both genuinely happy with my success.
Zétény Szijártó’s Assessment:
The training camp went well, I think my form is better than ever. I had my TT bike with me there, so I was able to prepare for the nationals. I had a plan in my head that I could have completed on paper, and the feelings were good. However, like last year, I had problems this time too. My position on the bike might be wrong, something might be pressing a nerve. So my left leg—just like last year—went numb this year too. It held me back a lot; it’s hard to win with one leg, and it got worse and worse by the second round. I’m sorry, but at least I’ll be fresher for Sunday’s bunch race, which will be completely home ground for me.
📷Photos: Schöff Gergely