Alban Lakata signs with BULLS for two years

Race-Ticker

Three-time mountain bike marathon world champion Alban Lakata will be riding for Cologne-based Team BULLS from 2019 and will be Karl Platt's Cape Epic partner.

It was team captain Karl Platt himself who arranged the deal with Alban Lakata. "In the middle of the year, it was clear that we would change the team for the upcoming stage races. With Urs Huber and Simon Stiebjahn as one pairing and the BULLS youngsters Simon Schneller and Martin Frey as a support team. When Tim Böhme retired, a place next to me was free," comments Karl Platt on the situation at the time.

Opponents become partners

So the three-time world champion is now moving from the Canyon Topeak Factory Racing Team to the BULLS camp alongside five-time Cape Epic winner Karl Platt after more than ten years. "It is a new sporting challenge for me to start the stage races together with Karl Platt. A
"A 'change of scenery' is always good from an athlete's point of view and spurs me on to push myself to the limit again," says Alban Lakata about the team change.

Choosing a team based on the sporting environment

"Everything at Team BULLS is super organized and very professional. There is also a friendly atmosphere - drivers and support staff support each other. That has always impressed me about Team BULLS. So I'm very pleased and motivated to have found my new sporting home here," says Alban's impression of his new team. "But it wasn't just the team spirit that won me over. Anyone who knows me knows that I also need good equipment to be confident at the start. I've already experienced often enough in races that the BULLS bikes are more than competitive," says Alban about his new race bike.

Cape Epic and the championships

Alban won't have to wait long for his first race on his new bike. In South Africa, he will celebrate his race debut with Karl Platt at the four-day Tankwa Trek stage race, which will also be the dress rehearsal for the Cape Epic starting on March 17. Alban's next big goal is to win a
"champion's jersey" as his next big goal. He will get his first chance at the European Championships on July 6th in Norway. This will be followed by the Austrian Championships in August and the Marathon World Championships in Switzerland in September. There he could pull on the rainbow jersey for the fourth time in his career - only this time with a BULLS logo on his chest.

Once opponents, now partners: Karl Platt and Alban Lakata are racing the season as teammates. Photo ©Sebastian Stiphout

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