Tokyo 2020: Maxime Marotte, the mountain biker who is making his way
Maxime Marotte during the 2020 World Championships © Patick Pichon / FFC
Text by: Farid Achache Follow
4 min
At 34, Frenchman Maxime Marotte still loves his mountain bike.
And like good wine, it keeps getting better.
He now dreams of a podium next summer at the Tokyo Olympics, after his fourth place in Rio in 2016.
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Maxime Marotte has just closed a chapter of his career and opened another.
After four years in the Cannondale team, the Alsatian will ride in 2021 for another American brand, Santa Cruz, a Californian firm, whose team is based in Italy.
“
A new project is starting up.
It brings me freshness with new teammates and new staff.
We are not going to make up the numbers and I will have a role of captain with my experience,
”explains with enthusiasm the one who finished at the foot of the podium at the Rio Games in 2016.
Frequently on the catwalks
For 10 years, Maxime Marotte has been the “
comprehensive insurance
” of the teams he has known.
He manages to climb very frequently on the podiums.
"
I have the impression of bringing my stone to the building
", tells this athlete still "
fresh
" with his "
late maturity profile
".
To argue, he does not hesitate to cite as an example his former German teammate Manuel Fumic, 38, still on the circuit, and who has participated in the Olympic Games four times.
Maxime Marotte says he is "
still in the game
" because he has not "
burned his wings
" among young people and "is
still progressing
".
In the heart of winter, Maxime Marotte is obviously thinking of the Games next summer in sunny Tokyo, where France will be entitled to two representatives for the elite men's race.
“
Everything has been turned upside down with the coronavirus and I must first ensure my selection,
” says the one who hopes not to miss his start to the year to obtain the famous sesame.
And Maxime Marotte, far from being satisfied, confides that he even has Paris 2024 in the back of his mind.
A true two-wheeler
This “
big brother
”, as he likes to define himself now, has seen the evolution of cross-country mountain biking over the past decade.
No more long races of 2h30 and place to a more spectacular discipline, with more nervous courses.
From now on, the effort lasts between 1h20 and 1h30.
“
Technological developments allow us to go faster downhill and the circuits are much more dangerous.
We have become real pilots and I have the chance to experience this transition.
To progress, you always have to work on technique.
My sport has become very exhilarating
”, admits this motorcycle enthusiast, with
exceptional
agility on two wheels.
Gone are the days of just spending hours pedaling.
Today, bodybuilding and physical preparation are on the program for a high-level mountain biker.
And dexterity, a major asset.
The competition to "
surpass yourself
"
At the age of 8, the prodigy son discovered the Alsatian undergrowth thanks to a father who was a fan of cycling.
He is passionate about the fun side of mountain biking.
Fan of the Tour de France, - he wore the jersey of the Spaniard Miguel Indurain at the time - Maxime Marotte never crossed the course of a career on the road, for the love of piloting a mountain bike.
This engineer in sustainable development in industry, who combined studies and high level sport at the same time, made his first competition with his local club.
“
I got a taste for it,
” he laughs
, “I remember it like it was yesterday.
I was stressed, I hadn't slept all night
.
At 18, he won bronze at the World Junior Championships.
Maxime Marotte loves to get out of his "
comfort zone
" and admits that for him competition is a way to "
surpass himself
".
“
It was a long way to become a professional.
I climbed the stages without knowing that I would arrive at that level
, ”he admits with humility.
At the end of the trail, the next challenge is called “Tokyo 2020”.
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