Cancellara enters the record books again
Swiss cyclist Fabian Cancellara has become the first person ever to win four world time trial championships, with a victory in Australia on Thursday.
He completed the course at Geelong, Australia in 58 minutes, 9.19 seconds.
Cancellara beat British former road race and time trial champion David Millar by 1 min 02 by the end of the 45.4-km race.
The third place was taken by the German Tony Martin, who had already won bronze in 2009.
Australians Richie Porte and Michael Rogers were fourth and fifth.
Cancellara had told French-language Swiss radio that his success would depend on the weather, which is very changeable in Geelong, a town 80 km from Melbourne, but in the event it remained stable.
The Swiss was six seconds behind Millar after the first six kilometres, but made up the gap and by half-way through the course was already 11 seconds ahead.
”I’m still simply enjoying that special feeling which comes after winning. I am unbelievably happy,” the cyclist wrote on his website.
The 29-year old had won three world titles since 2006 and gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
He now has his eyes set on Sunday’s road race in the world championships.
Cheating accusations
In April Cancellara, also known as Spartacus, won the gruelling Paris-Roubaix course – a route nicknamed the Hell of the North – only days after winning the Tour of Flanders one-day classic.
His consecutive victories within such a short space of time sparked cheating accusations.
A video posted on YouTube showed that the Bernese rider could have had an auxiliary motor attached to his bike during the Tour of Flanders or on the Paris-Roubaix course.
The cyclist rejected the accusations saying the two victories were the result of his work only.
Fabian Cancellara was born in 1981 in a village near the Swiss capital, Bern.
He started cycling at the age of 13, and won the junior world time trials in 1998 and 1999.
He turned professional in 2000 after coming second at the U-23 World Time Trial Championship.
His breakthrough year was 2004, when he was fourth in the Paris-Roubaix and won the prologue of the Tour de France, and wore the leader’s yellow jersey for two stages.
A time trial specialist, he has been riding with the Saxo Bank team since 2009, but is expect to announce a change of team shortly.
He is married with one daughter.
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