For a long time, Giant was absent from the Cross-Country World Cup. Now the brand is expanding its involvement in cross-country again this year. The 20-year-old Australian Cameron Wright was already riding for Giant in the U23 class. He will now be joined by Swiss rider Reto Indergand and Frenchman Antoine Philipp.
Indergand most recently rode for the BMC Mountain Bike Racing Team, which was surprisingly disbanded at the end of October 2019 and relaunched under Julien Absalon.

In the following lines, Reto Indergand reveals how the collaboration with Giant came about, how the preparations went and what the goals are for this season, which has been characterized by postponements.

The BMC mountain bike racing team was unexpectedly disbanded at the end of last year. Did you find out about this earlier?
No, the dissolution of the team came as a surprise to me too. However, I signed a one-year contract with BMC that was due to expire at the end of 2019 anyway. I already realized in the summer that I wanted a change after eight years to become part of a different team. So I got to grips with it early on and held talks. The chemistry at Giant was just great. They wanted to strengthen and expand the team and placed a lot of trust in me right from the start. The fact that I already had a firm commitment at the beginning of September gave me the security I needed.

Two young athletes will be racing alongside you in the cross country. Are you now the team leader?
With Cameron Wright and Antoine Philipp, I have two younger racers at my side. They achieved good results last season and can already boast great palmares. I don't see myself as the team leader. It's important to me that we can visit the tracks together, for example. Of course, Performance Coach Oscar Saiz will also be very supportive. It's not important to act as a leader, but as a team player. I feel a great deal of trust from Giant in terms of product development. I really appreciate this and I am happy to help with the continuous improvement of the products.What are your racing plans? Until now, you were part of a Swiss team and therefore always competed in the "Proffix Swiss Bike Cup". Now all three cross-country riders come from very different countries, where do you ride most of your races?
Before the whole corona situation, my planning looked like this: I'm racing the entire World Cup season with the team. I will also be taking part in most of the races in the "Proffix Swiss Bike Cup" and competing in other races in nearby countries.
At the moment, however, there are more important things for me and for all of us than riding races. It's uncertain when and if we can continue the season. I don't expect there to be many international races this season. The top priority now is for everyone to stay healthy and for those who have already fallen ill to recover.

Despite everything, back to "normal": how is the team's support planned on site?
There will be a huge delegation on site at the World Cup races, especially at the double events with the downhill riders. I'm glad that I can continue to count on all-round support: physiotherapist, cook, mechanic, technical trainer, sports director. That is a great luxury. At the team camp in February, I already had some This also gives me security and support.
In Switzerland, I am looked after by my family. My wife Jennifer takes on some of the administrative and organizational tasks. My brother-in-law Severin Sägesser is a bike mechanic. He finished his own career in February and is available to service my bike before and during the races. The fact that I am often on the road with my family means a lot to me.

How did your pre-season preparations and the start of the season go?
My pre-season preparation went very well. I had the metal plate removed from my wrist (fracture in September 2018). I then started the build-up. As always, I completed the WK days in Tenero and Gran Canaria with the national team.
Then there were a few days in Finale Ligure, the team camp in Barcelona and the start of the race in Banyoles. Fortunately, I stayed healthy. As there was hardly any snow here in Uri and the temperatures were milder, I was able to train on my bike most of the time. Shortly before all the races were canceled, I was able to take part in a C2 race in Alanya (Turkey). This was also the last relevant race for the world rankings. These have been frozen since March 15. For me, this race was mainly about working on my race hardness, as well as scoring UCI points again. My race went much better than in Banyoles. I finished second behind Martin Gluth.

What do you think about the postponement of the Olympic Games in Tokyo and is participation an issue for you?
Swiss Olympic submitted an application for postponement and the IOC made the same decision shortly afterwards. This is entirely in the interests of us athletes. The world is in a state of emergency. At the moment, we should show respect for our fellow human beings and help others, not compete against each other.
And of course, the Olympics only come around every four years and what young athlete doesn't dream of taking part? It was no different for me as a junior. I'm certainly in a new starting position for me. Five Swiss athletes, including myself, have already met the standard. However, only three of these five athletes are allowed to compete. So there will certainly be an exciting battle once the revised selection races are announced.

Are there any sporting goals for 2020 in the current situation?
It's really difficult to focus on anything at the moment. In winter, when asked about my goals for the season, I would have answered clearly: I'm focusing on the European and World Championships again this year. I've finished fifth at the European Championships in each of the last two years. The World Championships course would also suit me very well. There is currently a new (as yet unconfirmed) date for the European Championships. They are also trying to find a new date for the World Championships. But it will be much more difficult for these, as the field of participants is much more international and it is absolutely impossible to predict when the pandemic is likely to recede. Nevertheless, it would also be great if I could compete in a few more national races from the summer onwards.

Are there any other changes you have made for the new season apart from the big change of team? No, I made a coaching change for the 2019 season, which has paid off for me. But it's important to me to have a stable environment. That's why I don't like to change things that have been tried and tested. The coach, physiotherapist and mental coach remain the same people. They know me inside out and the collaboration works very well.

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