Few artistic cyclists have dominated their sport to the extent of seven-time Single Men UCI World Champion Lukas Kohl (Kirchehrenbach/GER). Although still only 28 years old, the German’s illustrious career has seen him repeatedly set himself new goals and increase the difficulty of his freestyle. He raised the world record several times, and quickly earned the nickname ‘Lukinator’.
Now, just weeks after winning the overall 2024 UCI Artistic Cycling World Cup, Lukas Kohl has surprised more than a few with his announcement that he is ending his international competitive career.
Unprecedented palmares
Kohl retires as the undefeated winner of the UCI Artistic Cycling World Cup, winning all 24 rounds – and seven overall titles - since the series was introduced in 2018. Crowned UCI World Champion seven times, he won the bronze medal in 2024. He has been German Champion every year since 2016, and European Champion twice (2018 and 2022). He is the world record holder, and also set the Junior world record in 2014, which stood for five years.
Lukas Kohl started artistic cycling at the age of nine at RMSV Concordia Kirchehrenbach. His first desire was to play cycle-ball, after reading about it in the newspaper. The coaches began by sending the scrawny boy to artistic cycling, where the plan was for him to learn basic technical skills… and that’s where he got ‘stuck’. What fascinates him about his sport is the variety: artistic cycling combines technique, strength, endurance, coordination, acrobatics and beauty.
“The solidarity in the artistic cycling family is also unique,” emphasises Kohl, who was accompanied by his mother Andrea Kohl as a coach.
His series of successes was by no means a given. Performing 30 tricks in five minutes - such as jumping from the saddle to the handlebars, handstands, pirouettes and many elements on the rear wheel, both forwards and backwards - he had to convince the jury time and time again. The industrial engineer devoted a major part of his daily life to his hobby, a life that “consisted of getting up, working, training and going to bed.”
His defeat at his home UCI World Championships in Bremen last October, after 188 competition victories since his first UCI World Championship triumph in Stuttgart in 2016, was not the reason for his retirement.
“In Bremen, my 'tunnel', which I always go into, had holes. The first 1.5 minutes went smoothly, but then the difficult floor defeated me,” said Kohl, describing his final after prevailing confidently in the preliminary round. However, he sees his third place as a sort of release: “I won the bronze medal at the UCI Indoor Cycling World Championships. And with that, I won my personal liberation from the pressure of a supposedly invincible person.”
A measured decision
Even before the 2024 UCI Indoor Cycling World Championships, Lukas Kohl had been deliberating whether or not to end his career. Like previous years, he wanted to make a calm decision after the end of the season. “I always review the year, look at what I invested and what I got in return.”
Ultimately, it was his feelings at the end of the season, the UCI Artistic Cycling World Cup final just a week after the UCI World Championships, that prompted his decision. For Kohl, it just felt like the right time. “The last time I felt as liberated as I did in this UCI World Cup final was in 2016, at the UCI World Championships final when I was the surprise winner. A perfect end to the season for me.
"The 2024 season was a real highlight,” he continues. “The UCI Artistic Cycling World Cup, with stops in Italy, Austria, Hong Kong and Switzerland, was more international than ever before. And with the home UCI Indoor Cycling World Championships in Germany, I was once again able to experience the best that our sport has to offer. I couldn't have wished for a better ending.”
Stepping to the other side of competition
Kohl’s retirement from competition in no way means he will cut himself off from artistic cycling.
“I'm looking forward to continuing to be there for the sport in new roles as Commissaire, official, coach and so on, with the same commitment and passion that has accompanied me all these years.
“One chapter ends, but the next one opens, and the story continues.”