"I immediately made the choice to focus on the road season" - Shirin van Anrooij about ending her cross season early due to injury

Shirin van Anrooij will start her road season unusually early at the Setmana Valenciana in about two weeks. That is very soon, which of course has to do with the early end of her cyclocross season due to injuries. In Spain, she'll soon exchange her Baloise - Trek Lions kit for her regular Lidl-Trek jersey.

At the end of December, Van Anrooij suffered a painful fall during training. After which she quickly realized that the pain was unbearable. In the end the verdict was also quite strong with a broken rib. So it's the end of the cyclo-cross season. "Fortunately, things are getting better now," Van Anrooij told WielerFlits.

"Training is going in the right direction. I also feel really good. I think that's a shame, because I now notice that the approach would have worked. I would have been good during this period. But for example, I can't lift things yet, so cyclocross would never have worked. That makes it easier to accept that that is not possible. For the rest, training is getting better and I can really look forward to the road season."

"In addition, Strade Bianche has been added to my program. After my injury, I immediately made the choice to focus on the road season a little earlier. I've also had a bit more rest, so normally I can get straight into it. I will use those first competitions for the classics."