Michael Hubner, the six-time world track cycling champion and one of the best track sprinters of the 1990s, has died at the age of 65, the German Cycling Federation announced on Tuesday.
Michael Hubner and Nelson Vails, shoulder to shoulder in the race. Nelson Vails Facebook photo
“This shocks us all. We are speechless. You don’t even know what to say. He is a sprint legend. He, Lutz Heßlich and Jens Fiedler made the big sprint in Germany”, said Olympic champion Kristina Vogel.
“Michael Hübner, my lifelong friend. Rest in peace.
8 professional years together traveling the world, winning together, putting on a great show in every city. I am sad to tears when I wake up to this news“, American professional cyclist Nelson Vails also wrote on social networks, along with photos with the great sportsman.
Although Michael Hübner did not participate in the Olympics in his career, the sprinter was one of the most successful athletes in the world in the 1990s. After the fall of communism, he won three keirin world championship titles (1990-1992), two in the sprint (1990 and 1992) and one in the team sprint (1995). He also won a World Champion title as an amateur in sprinting (1986).
Four great cyclists of the 1990s. Photo: Facebook/Nelson Vails
In the last year of his career, he won the world team sprint silver with his close friend Jens Fiedler and the title of German champion.
Michael Hubner ended his career in 1997. Until 2022, he was the sports director of the track cycling team TheedProjekt-Cycling, which included, among others, athletes such as double Olympic champion Kristina Vogel and Olympic medalists Maximilian Levy and Lea Sophie.
