Audrey Cordon-Ragot back on bike for first time since stroke

Audrey Cordon-Ragot is back on her bike for the first time since her stroke in September. The French natinoal champion shared her solid training ride of a good 100 kilometers during her vacation on the French island of Martinique.

“The first outing on the bike since September,” wrote Cordon-Ragot. It is a big step forward for Cordon-Ragot. Shortly before the World Cycling Championships in Wollongong, Australia, she suffered a stroke. In order for her to go to Australia, the cycling federation required her to have an MRI scan. "If the federation had not insisted, I would have gotten on the plane on Sunday and that could have ended dramatically. Without anticoagulant, I would undoubtedly have had another stroke, and this time a big one,” explained Cordon-Ragot.

Even after everything, Cordon-Ragot seems to be doing well. After her stroke diagnosis, she underwent a heart scan that revealed a hole in her heart was to blame. Fortunately, she underwent surgery to close the hole, so she is now able to ride a bike again. “That MRI showed the stroke. It was a shock for me. I stayed in hospital in Pontivy for a few days.It’s been a month now and I haven’t done exercise in that month. It was hard mentally and physically to not be able to. I will have to start slowly but I expect to return to the peloton next year,” shared Cordon-Ragot.

She is excited to ride again in peloton next season. "I'm super looking forward to it,"Cordon-Ragot said. She already revealed her plans of retirement after Paris Olympics and she wants to enjoy the last two years on bike. "Even before my stroke, I felt I needed to embark on a new adventure. I've reached a point in my career where I know when I'm going to stop. I'm happy to be able to decide that for myself.Now that my career was almost taken from me, I feel even more motivated to make the most of the next two years," concluded the French national champion.