"I'm not coming back from this": Mads Pedersen feared his career was over after early-season Valenciana crash

Ahead of the 2026 season, Mads Pedersen was nominated by many into the role of challenger to Tadej Pogacar and Mathieu van der Poel at the Classics. No wonder, Pedersen stood on the podium multiple times year prior and often has been the only man close to the two superstars. Thus the entrance to new season was filled with expectations, yet those immediately dispersed on Pedersen's first race-day at Volta a Comunitat Valenciana where the Dane had a severe crash.

Pedersen remembers lying face down in some bushes and attempting to push himself up but being unable to due to his injuries. "The race doctor straightaway thought I'd broken my neck and back so they put a neck cast on," Pedersen said on Half Wheeling podcast.

Jeroen Heymans, Pedersen's mechanic, was one of the first on the scene after his crash and remembers the rider "screaming in pain". "When I got closer, he said to call his wife. Of course, I was scared," Heymans said.

Michael Schär, Lidl-Trek's sporting director for that race, immediately feared the worst. But fortunately, the Dane gave positive feedback as soon as he had overcome the initial shock. "I asked him if he could move his legs and feet and he confirmed. This was good," Schär said.

Pedersen was shipped to a nearby hospital in an ambulance but both Pedersen and Schär remember how difficult that one-and-a-half hour journey was.

"It was quite an emotional ride. I remember telling Mikey: 'Look, if my back is broken, I'm not coming back from this and cycling is not for me anymore,'" Pedersen said. "I know I'm a big fighter but there's a limit for everything and that would've been my limit."

Schär recalls that he said he'd also step away if Pedersen had broken his back, and described the seriousness of such an accident. "Everything was in doubt," he said. "I think it's human in this moment that you start doubting a bit more than just the sport. You start doubting the big picture, what you're actually doing here, is it worth it what you're doing? This big questions come up."

The two men have eventually made it to the hospital where they received the "good" news in the sense that Pedersen's back and neck were not injured as the Dane had feared. He didn't escape damage-free, but collarbone and wrist fractures are very much treatable nowadays. Estimated recovery period: 12 weeks.

And since Pedersen is the warrior he is, he'd been back at the team hotel that same evening. That was crucial to the team's mindset for the rest of the race, Schär describes this as a "typical Mads moment" which showcased why he is a "born leader".

While Mads kept a strong front, it was clear he was far from okay as he couldn't even eat his dinner properly. "I tried to keep the mood high," he added. "It was really tough. Eating was not possible, eating yogurts with a straw. I can't even explain how hard it was, you can't really move or eat."

Three months without racing would mean that Pedersen would've missed the entire spring, but cyclists are tough guys and so, mere six weeks later, Mads Pedersen was back at the Milano-Sanremo where he finished 4th. The former world champion was also 5th at Flanders and 7th at Roubaix. In that sense, it wasn't exactly a success campaign, but given circumstances, it was almost as impressive feat as winning one of the Monuments would've been.