“An ambulance had to come because I’d fallen into a coma” – How Kim Le Court went from a 10% survival chance to the top of women’s cycling

Kim Le Court’s rise to the top of women’s cycling has taken her from mountain bike stages in South Africa to victories in some of the sport’s biggest races. But long before she became one of the most recognisable riders in the Women’s WorldTour, her story almost ended before it had even begun.

The Mauritian rider revealed in the Radio Peloton podcast that a childhood battle with malaria left doctors fearing the worst after a series of misdiagnoses allowed the disease to spiral out of control.

“That’s where I caught malaria,” Le Court explained, recalling a childhood move from South Africa to Madagascar that quickly turned from adventure to crisis.

The illness would ultimately leave her fighting for her life.

When Le Court returned to France, the severity of the illness initially went unnoticed. Doctors, unfamiliar with the tropical disease, believed her symptoms were far less serious. “There, they said it was just the flu,” she recalled.

The mistake proved critical. Twice she was sent home as her condition deteriorated, until the situation finally reached breaking point. “I couldn’t walk anymore. An ambulance had to come and pick me up because I had fallen into a coma.”

Only when doctors realised she had recently been in Madagascar did the true diagnosis emerge. By then, the prognosis was grim. Le Court was given only a ten percent chance of survival.

Her family were forced to prepare for the possibility that she might not recover.

In a final attempt to save her life, doctors sourced a risky medication from Madagascar. The treatment did not work for everyone, and Le Court’s father had to sign a declaration taking full responsibility before it could be administered. “My brother was called and told he should come and say goodbye to me,” Le Court remembered.

The following morning, the unexpected happened.

After receiving the treatment, Le Court woke up in the corridor of the hospital in a scene that still feels almost surreal in hindsight. “The next morning, I woke up on a bike in the hospital corridor. What I remember is that I had an IV in my arm, but I had to keep my arm straight while I was on the bike.”

It was a moment that now feels strangely symbolic, given the career that would follow.

At the time, however, the experience left the deepest impression on her family. “It was a very difficult period for my parents and my brother. They remember everything. I was still young.”

Le Court’s path into professional cycling was anything but straightforward.

Born in South Africa and raised partly in Mauritius, she grew up far from the traditional pathways that funnel riders into the European peloton. Early attempts to establish herself in Europe during the middle of the last decade proved difficult, and her career briefly moved away from the road scene.

Instead, she built her reputation in mountain biking, where endurance and technical ability became defining strengths. The turning point came with her victory at the Cape Epic in 2023, one of the sport’s most prestigious stage races.

That success helped reopen the door to road racing.

A year later, she secured a contract with the AG Insurance - Soudal Team, and the impact was immediate. Le Court quickly proved herself capable of competing at the highest level of the Women’s WorldTour, delivering victories and breakthrough performances that elevated her profile across the sport.

Her results have since cemented her reputation as one of the most exciting riders to emerge from outside cycling’s traditional heartlands, a Mauritian athlete capable of challenging the established European powerhouses.

Looking back now, the story that began with a childhood medical emergency has become part of the identity that shapes Le Court’s career.

The episode left scars for her family, but it also provided a reminder of just how unlikely her sporting journey has been.

Today, she can reflect on the experience with a sense of distance and even humour. “In the meantime, I never get bitten by mosquitoes anymore.”

For a rider who once faced only a ten per cent chance of survival, reaching the top of professional cycling represents a comeback that few could have imagined.