"When you're in a wheelchair for so long, a lot of things go through your head" - Alvaro Hodeg shares how he thought cycling career was over

Álvaro Hodeg, Colombian cyclist who suffered a hard accident at the end of 2021 that has had him a year and a half off, has returned to competition this week in the Giro di Sicilia, where he is finding very good feelings.

In an interview with Marca's Nacho Labarga, the UAE Team Emirates sprinter recalled his terrible accident and how hard it was for him until he felt like a cyclist again. "After the accident I looked at my legs and saw that I had bones on one side and my foot on the other. That's when I thought it was all over. I never want to show those photos because they are horrible. I thought I would never walk again and that uncertainty was the hardest thing."

"When you're in a wheelchair for so long, a lot of things go through your head, but I don't want to talk about negative things. But everything goes through your mind, thousands of things. Sometimes you think you don't want anything in life because going from being an active athlete to being unemployed is very hard. I went from 100 to zero," said Hodeg.

The Colombian rider, who after Sicily plans to race Eschborn-Frankfurt, the Tour of Hungary, the Tour of Slovenia, the Boucles de la Mayenne and the Tour of Pologne (no grand tours for now), was pleased with how well he is feeling on the bike at the moment in Italy.

"I think it's going better than expected. I wanted to help my teammates and that's why I came to this race. To be there in the shadow was the plan, but this Wednesday I made the attempt after two years to be in the sprint again, to feel that adrenaline, and I felt good and happy. I didn't feel any fears or nerves. I'm too happy. That was the most important 'victory' of my life, the fact that I felt I could be there again. I only lacked legs, but for location and the rest everything was perfect. I think it will only be a matter of time before I win again," explained the UAE rider.

He finished by talking about his teammates who have supported him at all times, such as Tadej Pogacar: "I've had a lot of gestures from my teammates. From my recovery coach Víctor, to Matxin, the Oliveira brothers, Tadej Pogacar has also been very attentive... Everyone! All of them! It's impressive because I've felt the support of my team-mates, even though I don't know them very well. You have to remember that they signed me when I was with Quick Step, I only did one training session with them during the training camp".