Belgian rider hopes to return in Tirreno-Adriatico
Lotto Belisol rider Jurgen Roelandts received confirmation today [Monday] that he is making a good recovery from his heavy crash in the Santos Tour Down Under, and believes he could be on course to return to racing in March.
The Belgian fell in a high-speed accident on stage one of the Australian WorldTour race, fracturing his sixth cervical vertebrae in his neck.
Despite that damage, a medical checkup in the hospital of Herentals today showed that the fracture is healing well.
He was there with the specialist who is treating his case plus team doctor Jan Mathieu. He was given a softer collar brace to wear, which will enable him to feel a little more flexibility. It is hoped that his fracture will have healed by the time he gets a repeat scan in two weeks’ time.
Roelandts has an infected nerve in his shoulder which is causing some discomfort and needs treatment, but he’s otherwise making good progress.
He has been given the green light to start training at home, and will progress to the road in time. He’s aiming to be back racing by the start of Tirreno-Adriatico on March 7th.