Bernese rider Mathias Flückiger made his first international mark in 2012 with third place at the Elite World Championships in Austria. However, the Oberaargau native made his real breakthrough in 2018 with his first World Cup victory. Since then, he has been involved in a tough duel at the top of the world with Olympic champion Nino Schurter, among others. 2019 was Flückiger's strongest season. With four top three finishes in the World Cup, victory in the World Cup race in Germany and second place at the World Championships in Canada, the Bernese rider catapulted himself into the circle of favorites for the Olympic Games in Tokyo. The fact that the Games have now been postponed by a year doesn't seem to bother Flückiger. The exciting duel with Schurter continued unabated after the restart of the mountain bike season a month ago.

Mathias Flückiger has now extended his contract with his racing team, the Thömus RN Swiss Bike Team, for a further two years. For Flückiger, the consistency and professionalism of the team is paramount. "I have an ideal working environment here. I'm not one of many, but as team captain I enjoy perfect support!", says Flückiger, explaining one of the main reasons for extending his contract, before riding on: "There are only a few teams in the world that can offer this standard and where everyone from the team manager to the physio works hard every day to make progress."

Flückiger also sees consistency and a familiar environment as an important point with a view to Tokyo 2021. "Yes, I don't just want to be on the start line there, I want to race for gold. And trust in your environment and in your equipment is very important. You don't do any more experiments!".

Alessandra Keller from central Switzerland has also extended her contract by two years. The team leader in the Thömus RN Swiss Bike Team celebrated her greatest success alongside team owner Ralph Näf. In 2018, she won the world title in the U23 category at the home world championships in Lenzerheide. 2018 was the year of the Nidwalden native anyway. As an U23 athlete, she was already riding in the Elite World Cup and finished in the top 5 twice, which ultimately earned her fourth place in the overall Elite World Cup. Unfortunately, 2019 did not go according to plan for the young athlete from Nidwalden. In a crash at the Swiss Bike Cup in Solothurn, she broke both wrists early in the season and was subsequently unable to make the most of her opportunities. Like Flückiger, Keller also emphasizes the team spirit as an important building block for success: "We have a very good atmosphere in the team. In addition, everyone strives for more and wants to improve. There is no standing still in our team! We take precision and professionalism to the extreme."

Team owner Ralph Näf sees the extension of the two top mountain bikers as confirmation of his philosophy: "Mathias and Alessandra are the top of the pyramid, they are our top performers. I am very proud that they both feel at home with us and that we can work together for another two years!". But it is not just top-class sport that plays a major role in Näf's concept: "We will continue to invest in young talent in the future. We want to introduce a strong U23 team to the world elite and promote Swiss talent at an early stage with the Young Stars Team, led by Marcel Kuratli."

www.rnracingteam.ch