{"id":118973,"date":"2026-04-25T16:43:42","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T16:43:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/25\/it-hurts-a-lot-defending-champion-kim-le-court-pienaar-forced-to-watch-career-defining-liege-bastogne-liege-from-the-sidelines\/"},"modified":"2026-04-25T16:43:42","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T16:43:42","slug":"it-hurts-a-lot-defending-champion-kim-le-court-pienaar-forced-to-watch-career-defining-liege-bastogne-liege-from-the-sidelines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/25\/it-hurts-a-lot-defending-champion-kim-le-court-pienaar-forced-to-watch-career-defining-liege-bastogne-liege-from-the-sidelines\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;It hurts, a lot&#8217; &#8211; Defending champion Kim Le Court-Pienaar forced to watch career-defining Li\u00e8ge-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge from the sidelines"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<p id=\"elk-cd17b6e3-94b5-4135-94d8-593d6f45fad5\"><a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/riders\/kim-le-court-pienaar\/\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/riders\/kim-le-court-pienaar\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/riders\/kim-le-court-pienaar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kim Le Court-Pienaar<\/a> took one of the biggest wins of her career at <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/liege-bastogne-liege-femmes\/\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/liege-bastogne-liege-femmes\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/liege-bastogne-liege-femmes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Li\u00e8ge-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge Femmes<\/a> last year, but a <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/we-want-to-show-resilience-ag-insurance-soudal-must-rely-on-young-riders-to-take-on-ardennes-without-liege-champion-kim-le-court-pienaar\/\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/we-want-to-show-resilience-ag-insurance-soudal-must-rely-on-young-riders-to-take-on-ardennes-without-liege-champion-kim-le-court-pienaar\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/we-want-to-show-resilience-ag-insurance-soudal-must-rely-on-young-riders-to-take-on-ardennes-without-liege-champion-kim-le-court-pienaar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">broken wrist<\/a> sustained in a crash at the Tour of Flanders means she will not be lining up as the defending champion on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>Le Court-Pienaar has opened up about how hard it will be watching the race from the sidelines this weekend.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-seasonal\"\/><\/p>\n<aside data-block-type=\"embed\" data-render-type=\"fte\" data-skip=\"dealsy\" data-widget-type=\"seasonal\" class=\"hawk-root\"\/>\n<p id=\"elk-cd17b6e3-94b5-4135-94d8-593d6f45fad5-2\">&#8220;Not being on the start line this year\u2026 It\u2019s hard to put into words. It hurts, a lot. This race means so much to me, and to watch it from the outside after experiencing something so special there\u2026 it feels like a piece of me is missing,&#8221; she said in a team press release.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"article-continues-below block py-2 text-sm\">Article continues below <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"inline-block w-2.5 h-2.5 ml-2\" fill=\"currentColor\" preserveaspectratio=\"xMidYMid meet\" viewbox=\"0 0 1000 1000\"><path d=\"M1000 100L500 900 0 100h1000z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet=\"\" class=\"clear-both pb-0 pt-2 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"&#10;            flex&#10;            after:content-[''] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]&#10;            before:content-[''] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]&#10;            font-article-heading pb-0 !text-base uppercase sm:text-sm font-bold&#10;        \"><br \/>\n            You may like<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<p>&#8220;There\u2019s a frustration, of course, because you want to be there, you want to defend it, you want to feel that intensity again. But at the same time, it\u2019s also given me even more hunger. Moments like this remind you how much you love what you do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Mauritian Champion became the first African rider to claim a Monument when she crossed the finish line with the victory at last year&#8217;s Li\u00e8ge-Basatogne-Li\u00e8ge beating, Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech) and Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo be honest, I don\u2019t think I realised straight away what it meant to become the first African rider to win a Monument. In the moment, you\u2019re just surviving, just racing,&#8221; said Le Court-Pienaar.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was only afterwards, when I started receiving messages, when I saw the reaction\u2026 that\u2019s when it hit me. It became something much bigger than myself.<\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-YWVmRbpvCby9Hn5cDJkrxj\" class=\"slice-container newsletter-inbodyContent-slice newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-YWVmRbpvCby9Hn5cDJkrxj slice-container-newsletterForm\">\n<div data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"newsletter-form__wrapper newsletter-form__wrapper--inbodyContent\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__container\">\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__top-bar\"\/>\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__main-section\">\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&#8220;It made me incredibly proud, but also very emotional, because I realised I was carrying something meaningful for a lot of people, especially back home. That\u2019s something I will always hold very close.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her victory at Li\u00e8ge was just one of many milestone moments in her career so far, which also includes winning a stage at the Giro d&#8217;Italia in 2024 and a stage at the Tour de France in 2025, where she also wore the yellow jersey.<\/p>\n<p>AG Insurance-Soudal will line up with Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio, Lore De Schepper, Anya Louw, Tess Moerman, Julie Van De Velde and Ur\u0161ka \u017digart.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo my teammates\u2026 enjoy it, but more than anything, believe. This race asks a lot from you, but it gives back in the most beautiful way when you truly commit to it. Wear that \u2018Donate Plasma\u2019 jersey with pride. It stands for something bigger than just racing,&#8221; she said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I\u2019ll be watching, supporting every second, feeling every emotion with you. And always remember\u2026 when you\u2019re hurting, there\u2019s still a few percent left. Push through it, believe in yourself, and ride with your heart. I\u2019ll miss being there with you all, but I\u2019m right there with you in spirit.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-f86841b5-0964-40df-b7dd-c7418806d4a0\"><em><strong>Get unlimited access to our unrivalled 2026 Spring Classics coverage with a Cyclingnews subscription. We&#8217;ll bring you breaking news, reports, and analysis from some of the biggest races on the calendar, including Amstel Gold Race, <\/strong><\/em><strong>La Fl\u00e8che Wallonne, and Li\u00e8ge-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge<\/strong><em><strong>. <\/strong><\/em><a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/sub24\/?utm_source=Referral+link&amp;utm_medium=Website&amp;utm_campaign=SC26\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/sub24\/?utm_source=Referral+link&amp;utm_medium=Website&amp;utm_campaign=SC26\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/sub24\/?utm_source=Referral+link&amp;utm_medium=Website&amp;utm_campaign=SC26\" rel=\"noopener\"><u><em><strong>Find out more.<\/strong><\/em><\/u><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/womens-cycling\/it-hurts-a-lot-defending-champion-kim-le-court-pienaar-forced-to-watch-career-defining-liege-bastogne-liege-from-the-sidelines\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kim Le Court-Pienaar took one of the biggest wins of her career at Li\u00e8ge-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge Femmes last year, but a broken wrist sustained in a crash at the Tour of Flanders means she will not be lining up as the defending champion on Sunday. Le Court-Pienaar has opened up about how hard it will be watching [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":118974,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118973"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=118973"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118973\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/118974"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=118973"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=118973"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/basketball.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=118973"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}