The latest World Road Cycling Championship that took
place in Denmark from 3rd to 6th September 2015, launched
a few more heroes into the orbit of sport – amongst them, there is definitely
Igor Kopše, 41, from Ptuj, Slovenia, who won the Individual Time Trial as well
as the Road Race in his category (40-44 years of age) at the Sunday race, thus
claiming the title of a World Champion.
Kopše, who had only
been an active cyclist since the age of 33, dedicates – despite having a family
of three children and a full-time job – all his energy and commitment to this sport, so it comes as no
surprise that he, in his five consecutive Amateur World Championships, wore
five Rainbow Jerseys. Although many classify him as an expert in Individual
Time Trials, he claims road cycling to be his main passion. A day upon his
return from the Championship we found him at work, but he gladly shared some of
his favourite sporting moments with us.
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| Some members from TUŠ TEAM: MATEJ KRAVOS, IGOR KOPŠE, MITJA MAHORIČ (boss), MATEJ LOVŠE |
It has been two
days since your last victory. How do you feel when you look back at this
outstanding achievement?
“This was not the first time for me to earn the title
of a World Champion – it is the third one in Road Race and the second one in
Individual Time Trials. I’d therefore already experienced those most
emotionally intense feelings in the past years. Also, for me this success was
not too big a surprise, a coincidence or sheer luck: when a sportsman gains
experience and gets to know his competition and the demands of the sport
itself, one silently expects such achievements, and I felt the same way.
Certainly you can never foretell such outcomes - there is always a myriad of
obstacles that may happen along the way, and I was faced with a fair share of
those this time round, but an inner voice kept telling me that I had a chance
to win. Winning was also my only objective, but I did not feel pressured
because of it, as I had gained the title two times before already. This is also
the reason why the emotional part of the win was not as strong this year, but I
was nonetheless excited to be the first one to get to the finish line again
this year.”
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| Warming up before timetrial |
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You had been planning to participate in the race for the past season. What
did your preparations look like?
“We, the cyclists, know the location of the Amateur
World Championship and the route there a year in advance. Last year, as soon as
they had published the course for this year’s championship online, I knew that
this race would suit me down to the ground. Heavier cyclists, such as me,
usually do well in windy conditions and on flat courses. Even before this
year’s championship I had achieved virtually everything an amateur could, so
this year I only had two goals – the Franja Marathon and the Amateur World
Championship.
Every year, my season starts on 1st
November after a two-weak break that I take in October. This is when I start
running and attending the gym, while doing some light cycling from time to time
as well. I attend the winter league of mountain running at Pohorje, which keeps
me active throughout the winter. All this serves as good preparation for the actual
cycling. For example, during winter time I usually work out ten hours per week,
but as the days start getting longer I dedicate myself to cycling and prolong
the duration of trainings week by week. In summer, I get to around 15 hours,
while in weeks before competitions I intentionally overtrain, squeezing in up
to 20 hours per week. This kind of management gets me in best shape just in
time for the competitions, or, as us cyclists like to say, I’m 'on the rivet'.
I annually do around 20,000 kilometres, which makes up
for roughly 12.5 hours of training weekly.”
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| Igor Kpoše start his winning time trial race |
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| Bad luck for Matej Kravos with puncture in TT race |
Do you plan the trainings by yourself or do you get coached?
“I am my own coach. It is also my hobby to help out
other cyclists. Not many people know that, but I am very well disposed towards
numbers and statistics, so I tend to have a scientific approach to many sport’s
aspects. Thus, for the past five years, I have been diligently noting down the
hours of sleep I get per night, how well I sleep, what my pulse is like in the
morning and how much I weigh every morning … I also keep track of a number of
data such as what I eat, how much I eat, what nutrients my body receives … All
of this is a part of being at the top in amateur sport, it is all very focused
and serious, not just mere recreation! We wake up thinking about the sport and
cannot stop thinking about it until evening. We train in all conditions, either
at -5 or +35°C and do the training because we simply have to. Just like the
professionals, our sport and competitions are constantly on our minds, the only
difference being the professionals making a living out of it while we have to
pay to practice.”
You and your team arrived in Denmark a week before the race. Did you get
to know the two routes well?
“We departed for Denmark on Sunday already, primarily
in order to check out the courses at ease. Before such races, it is of vital
importance to know the course with all its details and tricks in minute detail.
It takes more than a day’s ride in a van to really get to know all 164 km of
the route of the World Championship. I managed to really memorise the course
well, I also had a course plan written on a piece of paper on the handlebars. I
knew exactly which kilometre presented which uphill, where the turns were, the
tricky parts …”
Denmark is not a country of many steep climbs, but it is the land of
wind. In such conditions it is imperative to choose the right gear. What kind
of gear did you choose?
“Cycling gear plays a crucial role in road racing. It
is not as important for the gear to be high-end as it is important for it to be
reliable. Gear must not let you down in the race, nor can it present an
obstacle. In windy conditions, the choice of gear is all the more paramount;
the last generation of KAVITEC wheels have proven to be outstanding in such
conditions, as they are very wide and their U-shaped frame can be a decisive
factor in case of such wind, as we experienced in Denmark. Strong gusts of wind
can toss a cyclist across the road, and it is necessary to be very stable on
the bicycle in such cases. The tires, also, are very important, as are the
transmissions. The latter are completely different at hill climb routes from
those at flat courses. My average speed in a road race was more than 40 km/h,
which means that tailwind can bring you up to 55 km/h or more. It is of utmost
importance for the front and rear cranksets to be big enough.
The clothing is also pivotal. The jerseys and the bib
shorts have become very close-fitting and aerodynamic, and the helmet, too, has
changed, all in order to ensure that you save energy in dealing with air
resistance. When cycling for 165 km, at the end every watt saved determines who
has more energy and strength in his legs.
You celebrated your first victory already on Thursday, in Individual
Time Trials. How was it?
“Individual Time Trials presented me with an incident
that a racer does not experience frequently. Weather forecast reported showers
from 4 pm to 6 pm, and this is exactly what happened. I was to start somewhere
in the middle of my group, at 4.10 pm, so our group rode in heavy rain, which
presented a major problem, especially at turns. The rain was a problem on its
own, but another thing happened right after the start: when I took off at the
starting ramp, my pedal broke off. I have never experienced this before, but
now it happened at the World Championship, and at the starting ramp on top of it.
I had not even made it to the first curve, so I barely managed to stay on and
went back to the judges to ask them for a repeated start. They rejected me at
first, but then allowed me to start as the last one in my group, 12 minutes
later. During this short period of time we managed to find a matching pedal and
changed it mere three minutes before I took off down the starting ramp again.
As I was riding last in our group at the finish line I knew that I had won, but
to learn about the absolute time, I had to wait for additional two hours for
the other racers to finish as well. Only the Swiss representative was 14 second
faster than me, mainly due to the fact that I was riding in rain while he
already had a dry road. “
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| Igor Kopše - pure machine |
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| Best in group 40-44years: from TUŠ TEAM on first place IgorKopše and third place Borja Jelič |
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| Youngest group : third place for TUŠ TEAM Matej Lovše |
So the event with the pedal did not throw you off your game?
“I am lucky to be one of those people who are not
nervous at the start. I get completely coldblooded, which has proven to be a
key strength many times before, and it makes me perform better under stress. In
my everyday life, I am nothing special when dealing with stressful situations,
but before a race, when the psychological preparation is crucial, I am
completely different, almost as if I were a wolf in sheep’s clothing. I did not
let the event confuse me; I started again and let everything turn for the best
at the end.”
Since the main race, the Sunday one, was still awaiting you, did you
take the time to celebrate the win? How did you spend the time while waiting
for the follow-up event?
“My main objective was the road race. That is my love,
my passion. Everybody thinks of me as the Individual Time Trial specialist, but
my heart lies with the Road, and I had been mainly prepared for the road. I was
very glad of the ITT win as well, but after that race was finished, we did not
celebrate it much. I had a massage scheduled, a great dinner with a large piece
of red meat and - a toast to the win, although I normally abstain from drinking
alcohol. We celebrated the win shortly on Saturday, when we visited the local
patisserie where we had an after-lunch dessert. I had a large portion of ice
cream and a coffee, as, before the main race, this was the only moment when we
could afford something like this. We had to fuel up for the next day, so a
dessert was more than welcome.”
Nutrition is a key factor of your life. At the championship, did you
prepare your meals yourself?
“By rule I prepare my own meals, and Denmark was no
different. Most of my colleagues do not make a big deal out of it, but I do,
and everybody knows that by now. Even though I perceive myself as omnivore,
there are a lot of things I do not eat: flour, gluten, sugar … The base of my
diet consists of fruit, vegetables, red meat, offal, relatively high level of
fats, mainly butter and lard, and eggs. I eat a lot of unprocessed vegetables
and fruit, but I completely avoid all kinds of grains and rather choose a lot
of starchy vegetables (carrots, beetroot, potato …). I never eat empty sugars
such as pancakes with Nutella or cookies - those are reserved for those who
want to be fat and ill. Mountains of pasta are also out-of-date in sport, as
they give a sportsman nothing more than bad blood iron. We should omit our
scepticism towards animal fats: I eat so much of those I should have been long
dead if they were malign. All in all, nutrition is extremely important, not
only in the diet you have before a race, but mostly in the diet that you live
off through the year.”
On Sunday, the day of the race, the weather was sunny, cold and quite
windy. What were the conditions like?
“The Sunday was typically Danish. It cooled down a
lot, and we had heard strong winds during the night already; in the morning, we
had 11°C and north wind. These conditions made me happy, as I knew that the
windier it got, the more difficult the race would be. If the track’d been sunny,
warm and calm, the race’d have been too easy, all the cyclists would be able to
endure it, but in such conditions only the best stood a winning chance.”
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| Igor Kopše finished his road race as winner in his group and abspoulte fastest time for road race |
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| After finish - Igor Kopše TUŠ TEAM |
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| Powering in timetrial mode to the finish |
The race was broadcast live online, and many of your fans and cycling
enthusiasts at home were watching you. How would you describe the 4 hours and 3
minutes of the race today?
“In the eyes of many, I represented one of the
favourites for the win, and many of the cyclists had my race number written on their
handlebars so they could watch out for me. I was a marked competitor, I could
not do a lot in the first few kilometres or the whole peloton would have
followed me. I was therefore aware of the fact that I had to be in front but
not be panache, and simply follow. The first breakaway happened after only 10
km, but the next 40 km were dictated by strong gusts of wind that allowed for a
bunch of twenty to break away from the peloton of 240 cyclists. Then, the
course turned almost completely west and had us dealing with side wind. I
seized that moment to attack and out of 20, only around 12 remained by the 70th
kilometre. At the 93rd kilometre, a selective wall was awaiting us.
There were extremely strong side winds near the top of the climb, so I jumped
again and had only two competitors following me still. I had to really pull it
through at that point so the peloton could not catch up with us. So at the 95th
kilometre there were only three of us in the tête, me, a Danish and an American
competitor. The latter could not keep up with the paceline, as he was light and
the wind was tiresome for him, so the last 70 kilometres were dictated by me
and the Danish representative alone.”
When did you evaluate that the Danish cyclist is not capable of being in
your tow and what made you take the final jump?
At the 155th kilometre – the last climb
before finish – I attacked one last time, by which time he could not keep up
with me anymore. I switched to my “ITT mode” and it became clear to me that I
had only 8 km to endure at my maximum and not make any mistakes. I knew I only had to get to the finishing
line. I knew the win was mine in the last kilometre, I could have walked the
last 400 metres and still make it, so I could gesture the win in the last turn,
but I only raised the hands off the handlebars (because of some unfortunate
past events) after having crossed the finishing line.”
You returned from Denmark with two World Champion Jerseys, which makes
five altogether. Are they appointed a special place at home?
“The title of a World Champion gives you the right to
wear the Rainbow Jersey for a year, but it is not just a right, it is also an
obligation, as the current World Champion must wear the jersey at all the UCI
races. The Rainbow Jersey can only be worn for a year, but we are allowed to
decorate the neckline or sleeves of our own jerseys with a rainbow pattern and
keep it for life. We lose the right to wear the jerseys after a year, but we do
not have to return them physically. I had given away most of mine; I only kept
the one from South Africa, the first one, which I had put in a frame.”
The next year’s Championship is going to take place in Australia. Will
you search for new victories there, too?
“No, I think I will not go to Australia. It is too far
and too expensive. Should the opportunity arise for me to cover all expenses
with sponsorship funds, I would gladly take two weeks off work and travel
there. But if I have to cover most of the expenses alone, I will not go to the
Championship in Australia next year.”
The season is virtually over. Will we see you at any race until then?
“I have managed to reach my goals for the season, but
it is not quite over for me yet. Some minor races await me in September, and I
look forward to them a lot, since I participate there every year, mainly
because I enjoy them. I will attend a race in Istria, and an Individual Time
Trial in Austria. After 10th October I will take two weeks off and
have a physical as well as mental rest from the past season, and then start
getting ready for a new one.”
The Špica šport
Kamnik Team
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