“I am a sportsman; I even used to be a professional basketball player. But I’m definitely not a cyclist. Standing testimony to this are the fact that I shaved my legs for the first time only a week before the race and the mere one thousand kilometres I’ve cycled this year. I even bought my road bike only three months before the race. Despite all that, my colleagues egged me on and I picked up the gauntlet. I’ve been involved in L’Étape for four years because of my job, but this time it was a whole different story... It was devastating. I couldn’t breathe, I was dizzy and sick, my back was hurting like hell, and every single second I once again begged my legs to keep pushing the pedals.”

Are you curious how Josef fought against himself and whether he reached the finish line?
Read his whole story at WeLoveCycling.com.