Motocross ace Walkner:

“Marcel is one of the pillars on the hard road back”

Marcel Hirscher supports his friend Matthias Walkner on the hard road back.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/GEPA pictures/Markus Oberlaender Kin Marcin/Red Bull Content Pool)

Motocross star Matthias Walkner was a guest in Linz on Tuesday to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the company with longstanding partner Quabus. In an interview with "Krone", the athlete, who suffered a serious fall in December, took time to talk about his progress, his first bike ride and the influence of Marcel Hirscher.

"Krone": The most important question first: How are you doing at the moment?
Matthias Walkner: The rehab in Tobelbad (Styria, note) is over, I was there for over six months. Now I will continue my therapy at home in the Red Bull athletics center. But everyday life is becoming more and more like everyday life, I can now walk relatively well without crutches. I'm heading in the right direction, but it takes a long time for the large bone defect and the structure to get used to everyday stress again. However, I notice that it gets a few percent better every ten days.