'I couldn't ride my bike outside for half a year' - Norwegian champion on overcoming a career-altering crash to land on the Women of Tour Down Under podium

The women racing the Santos Tour Down Under had plenty to overcome in three days of racing - with high temperatures and hilly terrain putting the peloton to the test.

While every rider surely had their own internal struggles and trials to overcome, for Mie Bjørndal Ottestad (Uno-X Mobility) finishing third overall felt like a victory after two serious injuries that could have ended her career or been life-changing.

"I had a really big crash in 2022 and I fought really hard to get back," Ottestad told Cyclingnews. "And then I crashed again and had a severe concussion that I struggled a lot with. Then last year, I started slowly to get back but I had some ups and downs, and still some bad luck but now finally, the training has been going very well, and I've been feeling just really, really good on the bike. Now we see finally, all the hard work is paying off, so it's really nice."

Her first crash came in the Tour of Scandinavia in 2022, she explained.

"It was a really hard crash, and I broke my neck and my back, so it took a long time to recover, and I also couldn't ride my bike outside for half a year," Ottestad said. She spent three months in a neck brace. So it was tough.

"Then, the year after I crashed again in the Tour de France. It wasn't really a big crash, but it got me out of the racing for half a year again [with a concussion]," she said. "Finally, I'm starting to have some luck again, so it's a nice feeling."

Ottestad showed her form on stage 2 to Willunga Hill where she finished third and claimed the same position in the overall standings, then she had to burn a lot of matches to withstand numerous attacks, in particular from UAE Team ADQ, who looked to have Dominika Włodarczyk move ahead of Ottestad onto the podium.

"I was maybe a bit too eager, but that's just how my racing style is. I really love to just be on it and just make it a hard race. Maybe I used a bit too much energy because I didn't have something left for the sprint, but at least I saved the GC, and that was the main goal for today."

Another rider with obstacles to overcome was Canyon-SRAM Zondacrypto's Maike van der Duin, who went on the attack in the closing kilometres of the stage, successfully helping to set up teammate Chloé Dygert for the stage win.

"I was going full in for the Chloé," Van der Duin explained to Cyclingnews. "Our plan was to make it hard in the final and just go for the attacks because that will be a big benefit for her. I didn't believe that [the attack] was for the win, but I believed that it would be the perfect setup for Chloé for the stage."

Van der Duin showed solid form after a difficult 2024 during which she suffered a broken ankle and the death of her father, but also celebrated winning a bronze medal in the Madison at the Olympic Games.

"Last year was not my best year, and in my personal life, a lot happened. The team gave me time to take a big break and come back as the real Mieke. I think I'm not in my best shape, luckily, because it's January, but this gives a lot of confidence and a lot of confidence from the team that I'm on my way back to becoming like myself again. And that's a great feeling."

Between Ottestad's setbacks, Van der Duin's struggles and Dygert's return to form after numerous injuries and illnesses, the resilience of the women of the Tour Down Under is a true inspiration.