"Maybe I wouldn't be here today if I hadn't had a helmet on": Zoe Bäckstedt on her scary crash, quick recovery, and Olympic goals

A severe training crash just two weeks before the start of the cyclocross season could have derailed Zoe Bäckstedt's entire winter. Instead, the 21-year-old Welsh cycling star made a remarkable recovery from a broken hand and wrist to secure an impressive seventh-place finish at the 2026 Cyclo-Cross World Championships in Hulst.

The heavy crash occurred in October during a training camp in Spain, leaving Bäckstedt with a broken hand and wrist. Her helmet took the brunt of the impact with the ground, a terrifying reality she is still processing.

"Who knows what would have happened if I hadn't had it on, maybe I wouldn't be here today, the way the helmet broke into so many pieces," Bäckstedt explained to BBC. "When I crashed I didn't even realise what was happening, because click your fingers and it was over. I stood back up and had the immediate aftershock of, 'this isn't good'."

Naturally, she worried about her upcoming races. "There were so many emotions going through me. My first thought was 'my cyclocross season is done'." Because of this scary moment, she now has a strong message for all cyclists: "Everywhere I go, I try to wear a helmet, even if it's just two kilometres away, it can save you so much if you're in an unfortunate accident."

Initially, a Belgian specialist delivered crushing news: she would not be able to race until the new year. "I did start crying in that moment, because I'd done so much training," she admitted. "To think that in the space of two seconds, that is gone, you know? That's the season almost done."

This was devastating after a long summer of hard work. "I did start crying in that moment, because I'd done so much training, and I'd done so much preparation for the cyclo-cross season," she admitted. "To think that in the space of two seconds, that is gone, you know? That's the season almost done."

Luckily, her recovery went better than hoped. "Once I could start training again a little bit and I was cleared from concussion, I started planning when I could get back," she added.

Having a plan helped her stay motivated during her rehabilitation. "Then I had a goal to look forward to and I had a race in mind that I could try and be on the start line for. That was the thing that was keeping me going, knowing that at some point I could, even though it was a short season, I could still do some cyclocross races."

Even though she has already won nine world titles across different cycling disciplines by age 20, Bäckstedt knows exactly what she wants next.

"I think I have to go with the obvious dream of Olympic champion, that's one in the future that would be a very big goal of mine," she stated. "I want to go for Los Angeles 2028, I want to give my everything to be on the start line and go for a podium, that would be pretty cool to do."

Missing the Paris Olympic Games in 2024 was tough, but it gave her more energy for the future. "If I hadn't been sick in 2024, I would have liked to have also been on the start line [in Paris], it just wasn't my year," she admitted. "That was hard to accept but it just made me hungrier to be on the start line in LA."