"I don’t think you can have huge expectations" - Tom Pidcock's coach happy with his recovery, but refuses pressure to perform in Liège

Tom Pidcock crashed at the Volta a Catalunya, at speed and down a ravine, causing him a great deal of issues with one of his knees. Besides a small fracture in the leg, he had several complications in the leg which saw him spend almost two weeks without riding a bike or even walking properly. Hence, despite having won a stage at the Tour of the Alps this week (with the crashing happening less than a month ago), hos coach Kurt Bogaerts asks for expectation control.

“Liège is a completely different level of race in terms of its hardness and length, so for sure we don’t have things in our own hands anymore,” Bogaerts shared in an interview with Domestique. The key man behind the Briton's training over the past few years is also an integral part of the Pinarello - Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team project and he explains the reason behind inserting the Tour of the Alps in his schedule at this time of the year. With Pidcock lacking the form to contest the early Ardennes classics, the decision was made to have him gain some more race rhythm in Italy.

But also to keep the Briton active, as his spring campaign, one way or another, ends this Sunday. “What was more important was not to have a long gap between Catalunya and the Tour de Suisse, so I think it is already a success that we were able to be on the start line here, and we’ll try to get through this race".

Whilst suffering through the climbs, Pidcock did manage to win stage 3 of the mountainous race, whilst carrying the points classification jersey into the final day as well. Whilst he is not part of the GC fight, it's been a very successful week taking into consideration where he stood only a few weeks ago. After this Friday's stage he flies to Belgium.

“We also have the intention, if everything works out, to start in Liège, but I don’t think you can have huge expectations. But the positive thing is that he’s improving on a daily basis, and his feelings on the bike are better every day too. But at the same time, he was one of the last guys who made that front group of fifty or sixty riders yesterday…”

Damage to the ALL, MCL AND LCL (ligaments), a fracture in the tibia, aside from the extensive bruising and swelling left Pidcock in a state where his spring was likely to have ended prematurely. It was an injury that Bogaerts was cautious on making recovery estimates.

“I never like to set a date for return, because if you set a date for return, you make errors. The thing that I want to avoid is setbacks, because then rehab takes longer. I prefer not to say anything because it’s always unpredictable how an athlete will respond".

But the Swiss team's leader has showed great character and is making the best out of what remains of the spring. “Tom proved many times in the past that he always has a big hunger to return, but you also need to make sure you don’t make errors that can affect his career. And with a knee injury of that level, I like to be careful, even if, of course, you want to be back as soon as possible. It’s about finding the sweet spot without making errors, and that’s not easy.”

“He was 11 days, I think, not doing anything, not even running or walking, and I don’t think Tom has ever done that. Even in the off-season, he goes for a run or even goes for a gravel ride or for a mountain bike ride. So really doing nothing, that’s something different for Tom.”

After Liège-Bastogne-Liège there will be a period of slowing down, recovering physically and mentally, as the second block of the season begins. He is returning to the Tour de France with high ambitions.

“The break after Liège isn’t going to be so long as we would have expected without the crash, it’s going to be only a few days. He’ll do some easier rides by feel, just to stay mentally fresh".

His build-up for the Tour de France is perfectly lined out by Bogaerts: "And then it’s likely we’ll try to do the [mountain bike] World Cup in Nove Mesto. He’ll do some altitude and then the Tour de Suisse before the Tour.”