John Degenkolb was born on 7 January 1989 and is a German professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam Team DSM.
42 Facts About John Degenkolb
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John Degenkolb is a winner of stages in all three Grand Tours, with ten stages and the points classification at the Vuelta a Espana, one stage of the Giro d'Italia, and one stage in the Tour de France.
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John Degenkolb won the overall classification of the Tour de Picardie, where he prevailed in the first and third stages of the 3-stage race.
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John Degenkolb repeated the exploit on stage 5, a flat affair in Logrono.
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John Degenkolb finished the Vuelta with five victories, including the coveted last stage in Madrid, where he concluded his second participation in a Grand Tour with another win.
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John Degenkolb followed these successes with another sprint victory at the Grand Prix d'Isbergues and a fourth place in the hilly UCI Road World Championships in Valkenburg, behind winner Philippe Gilbert of Belgium.
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John Degenkolb then went on to win the Vattenfall Cyclassics World Tour race in his homeland, beating Andre Greipel to the line.
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John Degenkolb earned the points classification and 3 stages of the Tour Mediterraneen and 4 stages of the Vuelta a Espana.
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The third success was a 'crazy finish' according to John Degenkolb, who had the better of second placed Tom Boonen.
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Right after the Vuelta and conquering the points classification jersey, John Degenkolb had to be hospitalized for a lymphatic infection.
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In 2015, John Degenkolb won his first race at the Dubai Tour, the third stage of the race, beating Alejandro Valverde up a 17 percent gradient final climb.
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John Degenkolb moved into the lead of the general classification, but lost it on the final day to Mark Cavendish, finishing the race in second overall.
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John Degenkolb would go on to describe his Tour as "satisfactory, yet not exactly what I had dreamed about", after placing in the top ten at eight different stages without winning one of them.
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John Degenkolb was seen at the front of the pack following attacks by Vincenzo Nibali over the pave sections, but was ultimately beaten by a late attack of compatriot Tony Martin.
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At the Vuelta a Espana, John Degenkolb was elected as his team's captain.
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When his teammate Tom Dumoulin unexpectedly challenged for the overall win, John Degenkolb worked for the Dutchman, including an "astounding" performance during stage 19.
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John Degenkolb received praise for his performance, with directeur sportif Christian Guiberteau calling it "phenomenal".
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John Degenkolb was able to win the last stage to Madrid, beating riders like Danny van Poppel in a bunch sprint.
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Late in the season, John Degenkolb targeted the road race at the UCI Road World Championships in Richmond, Virginia, being named in a leading duo with fellow sprinter Andre Greipel.
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John Degenkolb was considered by many to be able to challenge for the title.
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John Degenkolb eventually finished 29th, 15 seconds down on winner Peter Sagan.
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John Degenkolb himself suffered cuts to the thigh, forearm and his lips, as well as coming close to losing his left index finger.
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John Degenkolb was treated in Valencia and Hamburg, but missed the spring classics season.
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John Degenkolb then attended the Tour of California, where he secured two top-ten stage finishes, declaring that he was happy with his progress, even though his injured finger was still a nuisance during sprints.
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John Degenkolb showed further improvement at the Criterium du Dauphine, his first World Tour event of the year, finishing eighth on stage 4.
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John Degenkolb followed this up with a second place at the EuroEyes Cyclassics in Hamburg, coming in behind Caleb Ewan in the bunch sprint.
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At the UCI Road World Championships in Doha, Qatar, John Degenkolb was part of the German team for the road race.
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John Degenkolb took his first victory of the 2017 campaign on 2 February at the third stage of the Dubai Tour, edging out Reinardt Janse van Rensburg and Sonny Colbrelli in a bunch sprint.
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John Degenkolb eventually had strong results, but failed to win a race.
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At E3 Harelbeke, the team was not present in the breakaway group, hurting its chances for a high finish, with John Degenkolb finishing in 13th place.
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At the Tour de Suisse, John Degenkolb was supported for sprint victories by his team, coming third in stage 3.
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John Degenkolb was included in the lineup for the Tour de France, enjoying a number of high sprint finishes, including a second place behind Marcel Kittel on stage 10.
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Later in the season, John Degenkolb started the Vuelta a Espana, but dropped out due to illness in the opening days.
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John Degenkolb was scheduled to lead the German squad for the road race at the UCI Road World Championships in Bergen, but pulled out of the competition one week beforehand, citing his ongoing health issues.
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John Degenkolb returned to racing in late January 2018 at the Challenge Mallorca, where he won two of the four races in bunch sprints, sitting out the other two.
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John Degenkolb endured a difficult spring campaign without any major results.
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At the Tour de France, John Degenkolb had a strong opening few days, including finishing third on stage 8 to Amiens.
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The trio stayed clear until the end of the stage and John Degenkolb outsprinted yellow-jersey wearer Van Avermaet to take his first Tour de France stage win, and his first UCI World Tour success after his accident in early 2016.
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Later in the season, John Degenkolb secured second-place finishes at both the Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen and the Munsterland Giro.
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John Degenkolb took his first victory of 2019 on 17 February, winning stage 4 of the Tour de la Provence.
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John Degenkolb was left out of his team's squad for the Tour de France, but performed well enough at the Tour de Pologne to earn a place at the Vuelta a Espana.
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John Degenkolb is married and has two children with his wife Laura.