29/11/2022

Eli Iserbyt "six out of ten" recently, but sees improvement in nerve injury

Eli Iserbyt had a storming start to the season but has over the last month struggled with form and has not been able to take a win for exactly one month. A nerve injury in the left side of his body has left him with limitations, and he is currently trying to manage his season as best as possible.

"The problem is not so much the back, but the buttock and the hamstring, which makes it difficult for me to put pressure on my left leg," Iserbyt said in an interview with Het Laatste Nieuws. The injury had not started now, but flared up at the European Championships which the Belgian abandoned, and is currently not allowing him to train off-road aswell as limiting the amount of running training he's doing.

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The Pauwels Sauzen - Bingoal rider explained how with data from his power meter he saw as much as 57% of power being put out by the right leg, and only 43% from the left, showcasing the effects of the injury. “An immense difference. Normally it is fifty-fifty," he says.

“In recent weeks I have not completed any running training to spare the hamstring as much as possible. Things are going better, but in Hulst the balance was 45.1 percent with the left and 54.9 percent with the right. After Boom and Antwerp, there are no double cross weekends on the schedule. Hopefully that extra rest will improve and it will stay dry in the coming days. The less I have to walk during the cross the better," Iserbyt continued.

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This dip in racing ability has seen him lose the lead at the World Cup and Superprestige, but he has kept his original calendar - despite having more modest results. Over the past weekend he rode to second in Kortrijk and third in Hulst, showing his best performances since returning from the European Championships.

“November was not a good month because of my back problems. I only give myself a six out of ten," he concluded. Iserbyt is currently leading the X2O Badkamers Trofee, and is 4 and 5 points behind Laurens Sweeck at the World Cup and Superprestige respectively. As the riders enter the busy month of December, it remains a tricky situation.