"I had to learn to walk again" - Return date remains uncertain for Sjoerd Bax after brutal Il Lombardia crash

Sjoerd Bax made a decent impression in his first season with UAE Team Emirates in 2023. Sadly, it was all brought to a premature end following a horrible crash at Il Lombardia.

Breaking his femur among other injuries in the incident, the road to recovery has been a long and arduous one for the 28-year-old Dutchman and the end is still not yet in sight. "Luckily I had the operation the same evening. I then got a pin in my hip and it is still there. After four days I flew home and from there I had to learn to walk again," he explains in conversation with In de Leiderstrui.

"Because it is a large bone that broke, it all takes a long time," he continues. "I walked with two crutches for four weeks and then with one. Then I started cycling indoors and that felt very easy, because you can get your legs around. It just took a while before I could put any force on it. And that's still not entirely possible, just like sitting deep."

"During the operation, they cut some muscle to get to it and then they hammer a pin into the bone. Afterwards it should be whole again, but the rest of your body has of course also been hit. So everything around that bone also needs to strengthen again," says Bax, detailing the brutality of crashes within the peloton, that sometimes doesn't immediately come across to fans through their TV screens.

Thankfully, although the rehabilitation process may be a long one, it's believed by doctors that there should be no hindrance to Bax regaining full strength eventually. "I have never really experienced stress myself. I have two or three teammates who have also had it and they are just riding around again," he says optimistically. "So that gives me good courage."

"If everything goes really well, maybe I could be really good in April or May," he concludes conservatively. "I hope it goes quickly and that I can still race somewhere."