Cycling: Racing into the Headwind

The first day’s visit concluded. Huang Chong had dinner with the team, formally concluding their meeting.

Afterward, he and Chen Junyi checked into a nearby hotel to rest for two days, taking the opportunity to look around Germany.

In any case, until the contract was actually signed, it was impossible for them to rent a place in advance.

Even if Huang Chong was 99% confident he’d pass the tests, there was always a chance something could go wrong before the contract was signed.

Other than traveling to Thailand for the Asian Championships, this was only Huang Chong’s second time abroad.

He quickly discovered that Germany wasn’t all that special compared to China. At the same time, after just two days, he was already struggling to stomach the local food.

The first meal was novel. By the second, he was starting to have doubts. By the third, his desire to explore was completely gone because it was all the same damn crap.

The food here was primitive and crude. Many dishes were just cooked simply, then served with a pile of bizarre sauces for dipping. There was no real culinary skill to speak of, nor any special preparation of the ingredients.

A piece of fish and two boiled potatoes cost 28 euros. The fish was unbearably fishy; they didn’t even know to marinate it with something like scallion-ginger water and cooking wine to remove the smell. The taste nearly made Huang Chong gag.

"So this is the Western world? At this rate, I won’t even have to join the team. This insanely expensive yet horribly disgusting food alone is enough to make me pack my bags and go home—"

Huang Chong stared in despair at the unfamiliar boiled fish on his plate. He’d had one bite and had no desire for a second.

Chen Junyi was clearly far more experienced. Having spent four years in the United Kingdom, she’d long been traumatized by Britain’s "dark cuisine" and knew never to order fish.

Seeing Huang Chong’s miserable expression, she had no choice but to order him a pan-seared steak. She chuckled and teased him,

"I told you on the plane not to order any strange-sounding meals in Europe. The taste always ends up being even stranger than the description. Now you get it, huh!"

Huang Chong was miserable. He sighed and said,

"Sigh. How was I supposed to know they don’t even grasp the basics of cleaning a fish? I feel like the chef here just gutted it, did zero prep, and tossed it straight in the pot to boil. The method is just way too half-assed."

But complaining was one thing. When the steak arrived, Huang Chong still had to eat his fill. Otherwise, he wouldn’t recover enough energy for the team’s assessments.

Before signing with a World Tour Team, a Road Cyclist must pass two major assessments: a medical examination and a physical fitness test.

The medical exam was straightforward enough—it was to check if the cyclist was healthy.

This included checking for any history of major illnesses or injuries, allergies, and whether their physical condition met the standard. Following that, there was a series of scans with scientific instruments, as well as blood draws, blood analysis, and urine tests.

After being poked and prodded like a lab rat all afternoon, Huang Chong’s medical exam results came back flawless. Every single data point on his report was perfect.

In fact, not only were there no issues, but his body fat percentage, muscle density, and cardiopulmonary health were far beyond what the team’s medical staff had anticipated.

"Director, the medical report for that Chinese rider is in!"

That evening, Huang Chong finished his medical exam and returned to the hotel with Chen Junyi for the night, preparing to come back the next day for the final physical fitness test. At the team facility, the head of the medical department, his face alight with excitement, brought the medical report to Sports Director Aldag.

"What’s the situation? No physical problems, I hope?"

Aldag was in the lab, supervising the trainers as they prepared and calibrated the professional equipment for Huang Chong’s fitness test the next day. He didn’t notice the medical director’s expression and replied casually.

"Well, not only are there no health problems, his physical makeup is nearly perfect for a professional Road Cyclist!

I’ve never seen anyone who could develop their muscles like this.

Plus, his body fat percentage is incredibly low. This significantly enhances the application of his muscle power, allowing him to possess a far more formidable explosive strength than other cyclists of the same height and weight."

Hearing this, Aldag’s deep, eagle-like eyes suddenly sharpened.

He immediately took Huang Chong’s medical report and glanced over it. Without exception, every single data point met the standard.

"So it seems his last-second sprint to beat Vader Milan of the Jumbo Team at the Nongla Mountain Peak in the Tour of Guangxi wasn’t just a fluke or better form on the day. He just naturally possesses more explosive muscle power than Vader Milan?"

The medical director nodded.

"I don’t know the specifics of the race, but I have to admit, from a sports physiology perspective, given his muscle density and distribution, it would be extremely difficult for even one of our own European cyclists to achieve such a physique."

"So what you’re saying is, regardless of his physical test results, he’s already in the genius category just based on his physique?"

The medical director took a sharp breath at this assessment, then shook his head and replied with a smile,

"No, no, no, Director. He’s not just a genius. He’s a genius among geniuses!

I can guarantee it. If you look across all the teams in the World Tour, in terms of muscle structure alone, not even UAE’s Tadej Pogačar is as perfect as him!"

When Aldag heard the medical director’s response, his expression changed instantly. Deep down, he couldn’t contain his excitement.