Karl Platt (born March 14, 1978 in

Novosibirsk Novosibirsk (, also ; rus, Новосиби́рск, p=nəvəsʲɪˈbʲirsk, a=ru-Новосибирск.ogg) is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the Russian Census ...

) is a German

mountain biker Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...

Life and career

Platt grew up in Siberia until the age of ten, where his parents were banished during

Stalinism Stalinism is the means of governing and Marxist-Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1953 by Joseph Stalin. It included the creation of a one-party totalitarian police state, rapid industrialization, the theory ...

. After the travel ban was relaxed under

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet politician who served as the 8th and final leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

, the family emigrated to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and lives since then in Osthofen.bike magazin
''Profi-Revier: Karl Platts Hometrails'' (german) = ''Professional area: Karl Platts Hometrails'' (english)
25 June 2016, www.bike-magazin.de, retrieved 8 August 2019. (german) In 1991 Platt bought 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 ...

and joined the ''LLG Wonnegau''. As his first success he became German junior downhill-champion in 1996 and after his move to cross country cycling he won the ''

Lake Garda Lake Garda ( it, Lago di Garda or ; lmo, label=Eastern Lombard, Lach de Garda; vec, Ƚago de Garda; la, Benacus; grc, Βήνακος) is the largest lake in Italy. It is a popular holiday location in northern Italy, about halfway between ...

Marathon'' in 2001.bike magazin
''Typen & Portrait: Karl Platt – mit russischer Härte zum Marathon-Star'' (german) = ''Types & Portrait: Karl Platt - with Russian hardness to marathon star'' (english)
21 June 2003, www.bike-magazin.de, retrieved 24 August 2019. (german) His greatest achievements followed at the

Cape Epic The Absa Cape Epic, founded by Kevin Vermaak and also known as the Cape Epic, is an annual mountain bike stage race held in the Western Cape, South Africa. First staged in 2004, it has been accredited as ''hors catégorie'' (beyond categoriza ...

: He has won the South African mountain bike stage race five times since 2004. Except Platt only the Swiss

Christoph Sauser Christoph Sauser (born 13 April 1976 in Sigriswil, Switzerland) is a cross-country mountain biker who won the bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. He currently races on the Specialized Cross Country Team. He was th ...

also won the Cape Epic five times. In addition, Platt 2008 and 2015 become German champion in the mountain bike marathon.bike magazin
''Deutsche Meisterschaft MTB-Marathon 2015, Furtwangen, Karl Platt und Sabine Spitz Deutsche Marathon-Meister'' (german) = ''German Championship MTB Marathon 2015, Furtwangen, Karl Platt and Sabine Spitz German Marathon Champion'' (english)
14. September 2015, www.bike-magazin.de, retrieved 24 August 2019. (german)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Platt, Karl 1978 births Living people German male cyclists Cross-country mountain bikers Cape Epic winners German mountain bikers Cyclists from Rhineland-Palatinate Sportspeople from Novosibirsk Soviet emigrants to West Germany People from Alzey-Worms Soviet male cyclists