Laura Süssemilch has had a remarkable year, marked by her participation in the Olympics in Paris and securing a silver medal at the World Championships. In an exclusive interview, Laura shares her experiences, challenges, and aspirations.
Laura, you have had an incredible year. The Olympics in Paris and Silver at the World Championships. How do you feel? Can you reflect on the past few months? Has it all even sunk in yet?
I am very happy that I was able to end my season with a medal at the World Championships. This year was certainly a very exciting one and the most important race of my career was coming up: the Olympic Games. This required extensive preparation, including participation in numerous road races with the Hess Cycling Team. I am very grateful that the team gave me the environment I needed to qualify for the Games, and now also to take home a medal at the World Championships.
Is there anything you would have changed leading up to the Olympics and the World Championships?
Unfortunately, I had been struggling with an inflammation in my oesophagus for three weeks before the Olympics, which is why I had to pull out of the 6-day tour in Thuringia after 4 days. I also crashed in training in the immediate run-up to the Games. Unfortunately, there’s no way to change something like that- you just have to make the best of it in the end. I believe my motivation was very high, and ultimately, I prepared well. I can’t complain about my preparation for the World Championships; everything went almost according to plan, I was only unable to compete in one road race.
Any wise words you would like to share to anyone wanting to compete at the Olympics?
I would say the most important thing is ambition and belief in yourself. If you have that, you can really achieve anything. And if something doesn’t work out, keep going. In competitive sport, it’s never a straight line to the top, you always have to be able to deal with setbacks and wait until you can start again. At some point it will work out, and in that moment, it is all worth it.
How has it been for you to combine road with track?
I really like the variety of both. And I also think that one benefits from the other. I do high intensity intervals on the track, which help me on the road on short climbs or can also be very useful for leadouts. On the road, however, I have also built up my base and race hardness for the track. With careful planning, I think the combination makes a lot of sense. Of course, each requires specific preparation, and I feel I’ve handled that quite well this year.
Can you share a little about your routines for the road and your routines for track?
The routines are very different: when a road race is coming up, I try to be very mindful of my food intake. The most important thing is to consume enough carbohydrates in the days leading up to the race and, depending on the race route, to adjust the training accordingly in advance. It’s also important to know the routes in detail and to know where you need to be at the front of the race.
That’s why we always have our team meetings the evening before, also to talk about the race tactics. I always end up doing exactly the same thing on the track. Each race spans 4 kilometers, and everyone has a clear role and knows exactly what to do. However, it’s extremely important to have a fixed routine on race day, as I’m in a kind of flow due to the high level of concentration I need over the 4 kilometers. As with the road race, I have my last meal 3 hours before the start and 2 hours before the race we make our way to the track. Fifty-one minutes before the start, my warm-up begins, with every minute carefully planned- detailing when I do my intervals, go to the bathroom, put on my gloves and overshoes, take my last gel, and more.
If you could talk to your 16-year-old self, what would you tell her?
I would tell her to just enjoy the journey without worrying too much and that there are many beautiful things along the way. But I would also tell her that it’s not always easy, but that it’s always worth fighting for your goals.
The season has now come to an end and you can recover a little before the next year starts. What will your training look like? I guess it will be a bit different since you just had an operation? What would it normally look like?
My operation doesn’t actually change much. I have now scheduled the operation for my off-season so as not to lose any training days. I’m now enjoying a few more weeks off and I’m also going on holiday, but I’ll still be doing strength training and keeping fit through other sports. When I start training on my bike again, I’ll do a lot of basic kilometres to build up a base for the coming season. Depending on the weather, I’ll do it from home or from Mallorca. But I will probably spend a lot of time there again in winter, as I personally find the best training conditions there.
What do you do in your spare time, to relax and unwind?
My favourite thing to do is meet up with my close friends for a coffee and have deep conversations. But I also love shopping because I love fashion and cosmetics. I like typical girly things, but at the same time I am a very active person who is super open to new things and likes to do a lot. That’s why I love travelling and would like to explore lots of beautiful places in the world with my boyfriend. In my current off-season I’m going to the Caribbean, which I’m really looking forward to and can’t wait to see the beautiful beaches and jungle there.
What are your expectations and hopes for yourself in 2025?
I want to develop further on the road again, I still had a few problems moving in the peloton at the start of 2024. However, that really improved over the season, and some of my team-mates gave me a lot of support, especially Marjolein. I’m very grateful for that and want to improve bit by bit in 2025. I hope that we can celebrate some successes together as a team. I also want to keep my focus on the team pursuit and bring home a medal at the World Cups or even at the World Championships.
What do you expect from the Hess Cycling Team?
I felt really comfortable in the team this year and I hope to feel the same for the coming season. The team shows a lot of understanding and gave me room to grow. I hope next year we can win a big race as a team and grow together even more. I think we have a lot of potential to achieve great things. I’m looking forward to it!
What motivates and what demotivates you?
Progress and success motivate me to keep going. Even small steps help me recognise my desire to continue advancing. I really want to achieve the goals I set myself at the start of the season and I always look for a way to achieve them. It is actually very easy for me to motivate myself because cycling is not just a job for me, it has been my passion since I was 8 years old. If my environment isn’t right and I can’t work properly, it demotivates me.
Thank you Laura, we look forward to watching more of you next year!