EN In Brisbane, Australia, Marek Neužil started at the World Championship for the first time among the elite riders. In the end, he took 27th place, and national team coach Lukáš Tamme does not consider his performance to be bad at all. However, the driver himself is not so enthusiastic. Závody Audio version Listen to article Open audio Tvůj prohlížeč nepodporuje přehrávání audia. "The World Championship didn't turn out exactly as I imagined," admits the twenty-two-year-old competitor, who is already preparing for the second year at the International Cycling Union (UCI) training center in Aigle, Switzerland. He entered this season very well. After transitioning to the men's elite category, he showed right from the start that he can establish himself among the world's best riders. He took an excellent ninth place in the World Cup in Papendal, the Netherlands, in mid-June. But he suffered a fall on the second racing day, he had to miss the European Championship due to an injury, and his preparation for the World Championship was significantly disrupted. Fortunately, the injury turned out not to be serious enough to prevent him from competing in the World Cup. "However, the injury definitely did not help me at the World Championships. After the first two training sessions, the coaches wanted to send me back to the Czech Republic, because it did not look like I would be able to race. We gave it one more chance and on Tuesday before the race I was able to ride at full speed. I was happy that I could start at all. I honestly thought that I was ready and I could hardly feel my shoulder anymore, but it was probably not quite as I imagined," said Marek Neužil after championship. He was not satisfied with his performance. "I advanced from the first heat, but it wasn't me. And the round of 16 was already a complete failure. To tell the truth, I still don't know what happened, and I'm very sorry. I definitely had higher ambitions. But on the other hand, I'm glad that I was able to race at all." Now the Czech bicross number one is returning to Switzerland, where she will have a short rest. "Now I will have about a week and a half off, and then I will immediately return to training. In mid-August, I will come home for the championship of the Czech Republic. This will be followed by the European Cup races in Norway and Belgium, and then the World Cups in China and the United States," he outlined the program for the second half of the season. He praises his work at Aigle. "It's great. There are ten of us in the training group - five boys and five girls. There are riders from practically all continents and I'm the only European among the boys," reveals the atmosphere in the prestigious training center. "We have top trainers, excellent mechanics and all the necessary background. I think it helps me not only as an athlete, but also as a person. We train six days a week, one or two training phases per day according to the racing program. I think my work here makes sense. The coaches here and in the Czech Republic are satisfied and I believe that I am moving in the right direction," added Marek Neužil.