Christoph Strasser (born 4 November 1982 in

Leoben Leoben () is a Styrian city in central Austria, located on the Mur river. With a population of about 25,000 it is a local industrial centre and hosts the University of Leoben, which specialises in mining. The Peace of Leoben, an armistice betwee ...

, Austria) is an Austrian ultra cyclist who is a six-time winner and record holder for the fastest time in the

Race Across America The Race Across America, or RAAM, is an ultra-distance road cycling race held across the United States that started in 1982 as the Great American Bike Race. RAAM is one of the longest annual endurance events in the world. All entrants must prove ...

. From 16 to 17 July 2021, he became the first person to ride more than in 24 hours, on a course at in

Zeltweg Zeltweg is a town in Styria, Austria. It is located in the Aichfeld basin of the Mur River in Upper Styria. Larger municipalities in the vicinity are Judenburg, Knittelfeld and Fohnsdorf. History Some farms were recorded at Zeltweg in the Duchy ...

, Austria.

Career

In his youth Strasser was quite active and enjoyed such sports as

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

. At the age of 18 his interests shifted and he began to ride a

mountain bike A mountain bike (MTB) or mountain bicycle is a bicycle designed for off-road cycling. Mountain bikes share some similarities with other bicycles, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain, which ...

. In 2002 he took part in his first 24-hour cycling event. In 2005, at the age of 22, he became the youngest person to enter and complete the Race Across the Alps. In the following years he won several more 24-hour races and in 2007 he set a new Austrian record in 24-hour cycling events by riding and at the age of 25 became the youngest Ultra World Champion. In 2009, on his first attempt, he qualified for the

but had to retire, when he was in 4th place, due to health problems after . On 24 June 2011, Strasser became the third Austrian after Franz Spilauer and Wolfgang Fasching to win the Race Across America. Strasser again won the Race Across America in 2013, finishing the race in 7 days, 22 hours, 11 minutes, at an average speed of — a new race record. This was the fastest crossing of the USA by an individual. In 2014, Strasser won and set yet another record at the Race Across America, completing the race in 7 days 15 hours 56 minutes, at an average speed of . On 21 March 2015, Strasser set a new record for the most distance ridden on a road bike in 24 hours, riding at the former

Tempelhof Airport Berlin Tempelhof Airport (german: Flughafen Berlin-Tempelhof) was one of the first airports in Berlin, Germany. Situated in the south-central Berlin borough of Tempelhof-Schöneberg, the airport ceased operating in 2008 amid controversy, leav ...

in Berlin. In January 2017, Strasser became the first person to cross Australia from Perth to Sydney in under 7 days, covering 3,950 km (2,454.94 miles) in 6 days, 10 hours, 58 minutes. He also broke the Australian 48 hour road record of 1,248.04 km, set in 1938 by Sir Hubert Opperman, with a distance of 1,374 km; also the Australian records for 72, 96, 120, 144, and 168 hours, and for 1,000 km and 1,000 miles. On 14 October 2017 Strasser, at the Tissot-Velodrome, at

Grenchen Grenchen (french: Granges) is a municipality in the district of Lebern in the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. It is located at the foot of the Jura mountains between Solothurn and Biel/Bienne, approximately north of Bern. With over 16,000 i ...

in Switzerland, covered in 24 hours, at an average speed of . This feat gave Strasser the

Guinness World Record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

for "Greatest distance cycled in 24 hours on an indoor track (WUCA) (male)". On 22 June 2019, Strasser won his sixth Race Across America, finishing the rain-soaked race in 8 days, 6 hours and 51 minutes. From 16 to 17 July 2021, he became the first person to ride more than in 24 hours, on a course at . He achieved with an average speed of . According to his team, he also broke 11 other world records, for Kilometer and Mile distances of 100, 200, 300, 500 and for six, 12, and 24 hours.

Personal life

Strasser currently lives in

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popul ...

, Austria.

Achievements

* 2022 1st place -

Transcontinental Race The Transcontinental Race (TCR) is an annual, self-supported, ultra-distance cycling race across Europe. It is one of the world's toughest ultra-endurance races. The route and distance varies for each edition between about 3,200 and 4,200 km, ...

* 2019 1st place - Race Across America * 2018 1st place - Race Across America * 2017 1st place - Race Across America * 2014 1st place - Race Across America * 2013 1st place - Race Across America * 2012 2nd place - Race Across America * 2012 1st place - DOS-RAS Extreme * 2011 1st place -

* 2011 3rd place - DOS-RAS Extreme * 2010 1st place - Glocknerman - Ultra World Championship * 2009 2nd place - 24h Race Le Mans * 2007 1st place - Glocknerman - Ultra World Championship

References

External links

Official Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Strasser, Christoph Austrian male cyclists 1982 births Living people People from Leoben Ultra-distance cyclists Sportspeople from Styria