Mads Pedersen recalls retirement fears after scary crash - 'If my back is broken, I'm not coming back from this'
Published 22/04/2026 at 09:13 GMT+1
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Just over two months ago, it seemed like Mads Pedersen's cycling career might be over. But now, he's back on the bike and back competing at the top level.
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Pedersen was involved in a scary crash in his first race of the year at Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana at the start of February.Â
Although the former world champion had been expected to be out for 12 weeks after suffering a broken right collarbone and broken left wrist, the 30-year-old made a surprise return at Milano-Sanremo just six weeks later, suiting up for Lidl-Trek.
And speaking to TNT Sports cycling expert Anders Mielke on his podcast 'Half Wheeling,' Pedersen recalls his emotions during the crash in Spain.
Pedersen remembers lying face down in some bushes and attempting to push himself up but being unable to due to his injuries.
"The doctor straightaway thought I'd broken my neck and back so they put a neck cast on," Pedersen told Mielke.
Jeroen Heymans, Pedersen's mechanic, was one of the first on the scene after his crash and remembers the rider "screaming in pain".
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"When I got closer, he said to call his wife. Of course, I was scared," Heymans said.
Mikey Schar, Lidl-Trek's sporting director, was also on hand after the crash and recalls being "worried" when Pedersen said his back was hurting.
"I asked him if he could move his legs and feet and he confirmed. This was good," Schar said.
Pedersen was shipped to a nearby hospital in an ambulance but both Pedersen and Schar 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."
Schar recalls that he said he'd also step away if Pedersen had broken his back, and described the "tough" questions that come up after such a big 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."
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When they eventually made it to the hospital, they got the "very good news" that Pedersen's back and neck were not injured and that it was just breaks to his collarbone and wrist.
After the emotion of the day, the whole Lidl-Trek team were given a big boost just a few hours after the crash when Pedersen walked into the hotel dining room, unaided, with a big smile on his face and casts on his injury.
Schar described that as a "typical Mads moment" which showcased why he is a "born leader".
For Pedersen himself, he took it upon himself to play a leadership role despite the physical pain he was in.
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"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."
And after his shortened rehabilitation period, Pedersen was back on his bike and back competing at the top end.
He finished fourth at Milano-Sanremo in his first race back, and in his most recent race he finished seventh in the gruelling Paris-Roubaix, 15 seconds off winner Wout van Aert.
Watch and stream the 2026 cycling season - including the Tour de France - on TNT Sports and HBO Max.
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