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It\u2019s been a long road to recovery, but Mara Roldan<\/a> is finally starting to feel like herself again. The roller coaster ride of recovery back in 2025. The WorldTour rider had a terrible crash in the Tour of Britain, just 24 hours after winning a stage.<\/p>\n The rest of the year and off-season was an emotional and physical journey. But she persevered.<\/p>\n After finally getting back to training, she jumped back into racing. Roldan knew it wouldn\u2019t be easy\u2013and certainly, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad as your first competition in months and months is definitely a tough one, but she was happy to be back in the mix.<\/p>\n But once again, she encountered another snag. Roldan was struck by a driver near her home in Sittard, The Netherlands, suffering another concussion just as she was beginning to rebuild momentum just days after her first race back.<\/p>\n Recovery included specialized treatment in Switzerland focused on retraining her vestibular system, balance and spatial awareness.<\/p>\n The 22-year-old from Whitehorse returned to stage racing last week at the three-day Itzulia Women in Spain, finishing 69th overall for her Picnic PostNL team. The result itself was secondary. For Roldan, just being back in the bunch and racing on instinct again felt like a breakthrough.<\/p>\n \u201cHonestly, the little trip from the Basque Country was a lot of fun,\u201d Roldan said afterward. \u201cMy fitness was lacking. I found myself using up the climbs a little more than I would have liked. But at the same time, every second I was there, I wasn\u2019t thinking about my leg or my head. That in itself was so freeing, and a win in my books.\u201d<\/p>\n Magdeleine Valli\u00e8res-Mill in the mix at Itzulia Women<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\nComing back from the first<\/em> comeback<\/h2>\n
Finding her legs again<\/h2>\n
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