Egan Bernal returns to saddle on ‘happiest day of my life’
The Tour de France winner rides bike on open roads in full Ineos Grenadiers kit and bike for first time since crash.
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Egan Bernal is back on the bike some two months following a high-speed impact in Colombia.
The 2019 Tour de France winner posted images on his social media channels of himself riding a bike on open roads for the first time since his crash on January 24.
The Ineos Grenadiers rider called it “the happiest day of my life.”
“After two months and 20 broken bones, here I am,” Bernal wrote. “And I want more. We’ll see each other on the roads.”
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The images show Bernal riding in a full Ineos Grenadiers team kit on his team-issue Pinarello riding on open roads in Colombia.
It’s apparently the first time Bernal, 25, has ventured back out onto his training bike on open roads since his horrific crash in late January.
Bernal is documenting his recovery via his social media channels, and continues to show remarkable recovery.
So far, Ineos Grenadiers officials said Bernal’s comeback does not have a fixed timeline and there is no pressure to return to competition. One Ineos coach, however, suggested Bernal is coming along so well he might even be able to return to racing before the end of the 2022 season.
The 2021 Giro d’Italia champion struck a stationary bus at full speed on January 24 riding at 62kph (35.5 mph) while training on his time trial bike ahead of a planned season debut.
Bernal said he “almost died” after smashing into the bus. The 25-year-old broke 11 ribs, a knee cap, a thigh bone, two vertebrae and a thumb, as well as puncturing both lungs.
