“He is extremely bitter” – Former Danish national coach offers rare insight into how Mads Pedersen is dealing with nightmare start to 2026

The physical consequences of Mads Pedersen’s opening-day crash at the Volta a Comunitat Valenciana were clear within hours. Broken wrist. Broken collarbone. A season debut that ended almost as soon as it began.

Less visible, but just as revealing, is how the former world champion is processing the setback mentally.

According to former Danish national coach Anders Lund, Pedersen’s immediate response has been one of deep frustration, but also sharpened focus. “He is extremely bitter; there is no doubt about that. But he is also extremely goal-oriented,” Lund said in an analysis for Eurosport.dk.

Pedersen crashed and abandoned the opening stage of the Spanish stage race on Wednesday, with Lidl-Trek later confirming fractures to both wrist and collarbone. It was the worst possible way to begin a season that had been carefully structured around early-spring objectives.

Lund, who worked closely with Pedersen during his time guiding the Danish national team, believes the emotional response fits a familiar pattern rather than signalling derailment. “It is almost as if his concentration is sharpened by this kind of setback,” he said. “There is no doubt that it is a concentrated and determined Mads P. who wakes up this morning and is already in the process of laying out a new plan that he believes in.”

That reaction matters. Pedersen has never lacked resilience, but the timing of the injury makes the psychological response especially important. Early-season crashes can linger mentally, particularly when they interrupt months of preparation and force immediate recalibration.

Lund’s reading is that the opposite may be happening. “If possible, [he will be] even more single-mindedly focused on the goals he wants to achieve,” Lund added.

While the emotional response is one part of the picture, the practical challenge now is recovery. Lund estimated that fractures of this nature typically require around three weeks, while noting that wrist injuries are often more complicated due to the constant vibration riders are exposed to, particularly in the races Pedersen targets.

Before the crash, Pedersen was scheduled to race the Tour de la Provence from 14 February and Paris-Nice from 8 March, with Milan-San Remo on 21 March representing the first Monument of the season.

Those plans now sit in flux. But Lund’s emphasis was not on panic or frustration spilling over into indecision. Instead, he pointed to a rider already mentally re-engaging with the problem in front of him.

The crash, in that sense, has not changed Pedersen’s character. It has simply activated it earlier than planned.