"The head just wasn't getting better with time" - World Tour rider back to competition three months after head injury that left him unconscious and convulsing

Bahrain - Victorious have taken to the start of the Tour of the Alps backing up youngster Jakob Omrzel with a combination of other young riders and members of the under-23 team. One of them is Max van der Meulen who makes his return to professional cycling three months after a difficult injury that put his career in jeopardy.

The 22-year old fell on stage 1 of the Tour Down Under where he was starting his 2026 season, and was forced to abandon. "It was a nasty crash. I was lucky in one sense, because I landed face and head first on the tarmac. I was unconscious for a few minutes, apparently lying there convulsing on the ground," he shares with IDLProCycling. "I don't remember any of that, which is actually a blessing".

He hit his head hard which ultimately caused the most concern, but it was only one of several issues that emerged from it. "It was mainly the head injury. I had some trouble with my arm, shoulder and jaw as well, but the head just wasn't getting better with time. For the first two weeks I felt absolutely terrible — constant headaches, like there was a huge cloud inside my head".

It meant a nightmarish winter-spring would follow. Only in early March could he get back on the bike. "After spending some more time in Australia I went home. In the end I couldn't ride for six weeks. I just laid on the sofa the whole time — it was rubbish".

However van der Meulen wasn't just not allowed to train, but was also struggling through everyday life at home, receiving help from a psychologist and suffering from the consequences of a rough concussion. "It was really strange lying on the sofa — I could just sit there for two hours doing nothing. Like being high for two weeks, but not in a fun way. When I think back to that, I'm proud of myself and of my team that I'm back to where I am now".

"In the end it gave me a lot of time to focus on other things. When I was lying on the sofa in those early days, my life without cycling felt incredibly empty. That wasn't a good place to be, which is why I sought professional help from a psychologist for the first time".

There were several attempts to resume training, something his body could not withstand: "After that we tried four times to start again, but every time I had to stop after 20 or 30 minutes on the turbo trainer. After five weeks we took another week's rest, and when I finally got back on the bike after six weeks it went better. But my form was alarmingly bad".

At the Tour of the Alps he returns to racing but without ambitions, just to test himself and support the team. "At a certain point you tell yourself it will take as long as it takes — but of course there are moments where you lose hope too. That's why it was good to talk to the people around me, to keep a realistic perspective.