Jens Voigt

Nationality: German

Date of birth: September 17, 1971

Height: 191cm

Weight: 76kg

Team: Retired

Twitter: @thejensie

Jens Voigt drew his career to a close in spectacular fashion; by setting a new World Hour Record. The tall German may have only turned professional at the age of 26 but he made up for that lost time by continuing through until the day after his 43rd birthday.

Voigt made a name for himself for his ability to endure pain (sparking his own catchphrase) as he regularly embarked on long breaks - sometimes with other riders, sometimes on his own - on the toughest stages. It brought him cult like status, especially in America. He is one of the few riders who has risen to the top of the sport without a long list of wins under his name.

His final outing on the track in Switzerland for the Hour surprised many observers, but one last hour of suffering on his own seems like a fitting finally for Jensie, who now works as TV commentator at races like the Tour de France among other things.