It has been a while since my last post on my website. I have had a very difficult time over the last six months.

Yes, I had very nasty injury, which came right at the beginning of this season. I have done my best to remain positive. After the operation I religiously followed the doctor’s advice. He had my best interests at heart and was very enthusiastic. I was supposed to have very “superficial” operation where a foreign object was removed from my patella. The cause of the injury was a result of me hitting my knee on the corner of a coffee table just 36 hrs before Ironman Lanzarote.

Well, operation was probably not serious, but recovery time after op. should have been taken with more respect from my side. Yes, I went too early back to training and caused a very painful bursa. Simply explained, bursa is a bag of liquid, which was created on the top of my patella – knee cap when I commenced training too soon. It is very but very painful.  My close friends know, I did have probably had the toughest 5 months of my life.

I could not walk pain free, I was limping badly with every step being very painful and needed crutches to walk.

The limping caused another problems with my back pain and overuse of the other knee and I don’t have to explain how it influenced on mentally.

I simply lost sense of being alive and became very negative, I almost felt I had no reason to wake up each day……

However what I did have was amazing network of my close friends and family and some really special people I met during this tough time. You know who you are!

I would like to mention Dr. Petrie Wiliers from SW19 Clinic who was the first one to diagnose my post operations complications and I would like to thank to all the people who were with me, I really value your guidance, support and advice during this time.

In September my luck has finally changed and I “got the ball rolling”. From one day to another I felt less pain during walking and within five days I was walking pain free. I thought I was the happiest person in this world, I could just simply walk. The first few days, I was just walking and walking. I felt my freedom again. I would go for 2 hrs walks almost every day.

So since September I have made big progress, but really slow – baby steps.

Now when I am writing this blog I feel like an athlete again. I feel happy, fulfilled, full of life. I have changed many things including career, personal life, training and my general full life approach. Also I have a new outlook on training with the new coach.

I just had a fantastic training holiday in Maui, HI while spectating Xterra World Championships. What could be more inspiring than watching the finest Xterra triathletes fighting it out in this brutal course!

I am back to training, feeling stronger and fitter every day and really looking forward to see what my hard work brings.

Never give up and never stop believing in yourself. These are the biggest lessons I have learnt (also remove coffee tables from your accommodation – they just get in the way 🙂 ).

I would also like to say big thanks to my sponsors and supporters who have been supporting me this past season and standing bye me the whole time:

Colnago, BBB, Vision (Windwave), PowerBarUK, ZEROD, HUUB, Sigma Sport, Retul Bike Fit, XLAB, Dr. Petrie De Villiers from Physio SW19, Hampton Physio (Helen Smith) and Hampton Pool.

I am really excited to extend my cooperation with Windwave and riding the best bikes in the world!