Niels Albert twisted his knee in a training accident last week and will have to delay his cyclocross season start by approximately a month. Albert will likely miss the opening races of the three major events - the Superprestige, de Gazet van Antwerp (GvA) trophy as well as the World Cup.
Albert is currently suffering from a stomach virus, but was hoping to get over it by the time the Neerpelt race this weekend rolls around. He didn't think his knee would prevent him from doing stuff.
"I twisted my knee in training last week Wednesday," he told Sporza. "Thursday it was stiff. Then Friday I became sick and I didn't train for three days."
Restarting his training was more difficult than Albert would have imagined. "When I hopped back on my bike yesterday, I couldn't even tolerate the racing shorts on my knee." He then sought help. "In the morning I went for a check-up to the hospital. They discovered a rupture between the muscle and the kneecap."
Doctor's orders were not to Albert's liking. "I am not supposed to ride for two weeks and I should not race for four weeks. If I am unlucky I won't be able to join the races until November."
Albert was very frustrated with the prospect of missing the fun in the mud. "My season preparation was for nothing," he complained. "Remember, two weeks of rest means four weeks of training. Three weeks of rest means six weeks of training," he said. With the enormous amount of training necessary to get ready for the races, Albert hoped to keep the rest period down to two weeks.
It will be tough to make up for lost ground in the season-long series events. "The classifications are gone, I have already settled on that.
"Namen [GvA-trophy on October 3) and Ruddervoorde ]SP-race on October 10[ I will miss for sure. Aigle ]World Cup on October 17[ I can ride if I am lucky." He admitted that he would be more likely to fight for a top 20 than for the win.
Albert was quite unhappy about the news. "This is the first time that I have something with my knee. It is a catastrophe for myself, my fans, my team and the cross world." Albert said that when a top rider has to take such a forced break, it is not pleasant for anybody.
He had a very bad start to the 2008 season as well, when he crashed while warming up at the Superprestige in Gavere. He was then out for several weeks, but came back to win the World Championships at the end of the season.
He did not think about such a scenario. "I can't buy me anything for the fact that I will be fresher at the World Championships. I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't annoyed."
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