The cycling season has begun and most of the great male cycling talents have almost all made their debut. Women's cycling arrives with a bit more calm, but with truly unique stories of sporting rebirth. We have seen skaters and skiers come to cycling, as well as soccer players, but a boxer had not yet crossed the threshold of professional cycling.

This is the story of young German Sophie Alisch, who at 24 decided to step down from the ring to wear the Canyon-SRAM jersey, ride a bike and dream of representing Germany at the 2028 Olympics. Born on November 8th, 2001, Sophie Alisch competed in 10 professional matches in her career and won them all, but despite her successes, cycling managed to win her heart.

«I know this change will surprise many people, and I understand why, but it's a decision I made after long reflection -  she explained to the German press -. Something clicked in my head during the preparation for my last fight in November 2024. Until that moment, I had been without fighting for a year and a half. I was training and preparing in the shadows. And for someone like me, who lives and breathes competition, who constantly wants to prove what she works for and what she learns every day, facing that lack of activity was incredibly hard».

The young German now lives in Mallorca, Spain, and here she manages to train every day and her progress is constant, although the team has not yet decided when she will make her debut.

«What I was doing gradually stopped satisfying me. That inner fire that boxing had ignited in me went out. I no longer felt that flame and that happiness».

Born in Berlin, Alisch has a truly impeccable sports curriculum, having left boxing without ever being defeated. «At a certain point, I realized I needed something new, a challenge that would excite me again. The boxing chapter was over forever and then cycling arrived, which reignited my desire to compete».

Leaving a sport where you have important results is not easy, and even more difficult is finding enthusiasm for competition and the desire to measure yourself against other athletes. «I had been cycling for years to work on endurance, a fundamental aspect to have good results in fights. But I still hadn't understood that this was the path I wanted to take».

Before making a decision, the Berliner thought about undergoing a stress test to verify her real possibilities of building a future on the bike. «When I finished, they told me that for a boxer I had recorded incredible numbers. They told me that if I committed myself, I could build something even better, because my genetic makeup encouraged optimism».

And so, before turning 24, Alisch decided to give a second turn to her sports career, leaving the gloves to get on a bike. «Before dedicating myself to boxing, I had already worn the German national jersey in several junior tennis tournaments. I believe I haven't made mistakes in my choices. When I got on the bike, I experienced a happiness that I had rarely found in other aspects of my life. It was difficult for me to admit it, and even today I struggle to say it, but if I have to be honest, then it's right that I say this: pedaling makes me happier than wearing gloves. That's why I know this change is definitive. I will be a cyclist until the day I retire from professional sports».