"I still do not have the courage to look at the photos" - UAE rider undergoing psychology help to overcome life-threatening crash in Poland

Cycling is unfortunately a sport that sees tragedy quite often, and some would argue it took a miracle for the same not to happen last August. The Tour de Pologne is a race known for its recent tragedies and in its roads, Filippo Baroncini almost lost his life four months ago. Now, the UAE Team Emirates - XRG is back to training at full speed with the team, but shares the consequences that the fall as had in him.

"I still remember every detail of the crash. In a dangerous downhill section, there was a lot of gravel in a corner. I lost control of my bike, and unfortunately, I went down where I went down," Baroncini said in an interview with Sporza. “I layed 45 minutes in a stationary ambulance. Unbelievable, if you know the state I was in. It was the INEOS team doctor who asked the paramedics to hurry and get me to the hospital". 

Stage 3 of the race was neutralized due to a that involved race leader Paul Lapeira and also saw GC favourite Mathias Vacek abandon. Baroncini hit a wall during a fall that saw him in very serious state. He opens up about his injuries: “I had a broken jaw, a crushed nose, and I narrowly avoided going blind. Because I was wearing sunglasses, my nose broke. But those same glasses saved my eyes. It was just a few millimeters, and I would have been blind.”

Compatriot Jacopo Mosca witnessed the aftermath of the crash and shared in an interview on that day his serious concerns: “Unfortunately, I saw Baroncini — and I really wish him all the best because it was a horrible scene to witness. I know he’s in good hands, but personally it really shook me. I saw him lying completely still, in a bad position against a wall. I was just relieved to see he was breathing, because it really could have been a tragedy.”

At the time, team DS Mauro Gianetti also expressed his praise for the work that was done after the crash. Baroncini underwent an 11-hour surgery and was put in a coma for 14 days to be stabilized: "His face was disfigured, and you can't imagine what oral surgeon Gabriele Canzi and surgeon Davide Colistra did. They did something incredible in an operation that lasted more than eleven hours. Medical science has made incredible progress these days. Things are being done that were unthinkable a few years ago.

Baroncini woke up in late August, and a flight to Italy during his recovery helped himm in his recovery. “My father and brother travelled to Poland to see me sleeping in a hospital bed for days. Afterwards, I heard how hard it was for them in that period. If I could have told my father before the coma that I was okay, I would have. But I was not in a position to do that. When I woke up after two weeks, I realized it was still a miracle that I was alive and that I could still see".

Baroncini joined his UAE teammates in the UAE for a pre-season gathering, and now again in Benidorm for the team's first official training camp. He is evolving and quite positive to make a strong return to the sport. “Now, two months later, I am happy I can train here on camp with my teammates. Of course, I suffer more than the others because my condition is still far from good. But I know I have to be patient.”

However the crash is not something that's behind him, and he admits he is traumatized seeing his state following the crash that marked his 2025 season. “I still do not have the courage to look at the photos from right after my crash. Seeing my badly damaged face, I cannot handle that confrontation. I have recently started talking to a psychologist so I can forget this whole experience," he reveals. "Because if I keep that crash in my head, I will not perform.”

But Baroncini is keeping his head high and has clear goals of returning to the top of the sport, which he was closer to reaching this year. The former under-23 WOrld Champion wants to be at his best for the spring classics and believes this is possible. “In my head, it is the end of March. But by then, I still have to seriously build up my condition. My big dream is Milano-Sanremo".