Wyman on the comeback trail
Brit cyclo-cross ace recovering from illness and injury
Restoring her top-10 world ranking is the key goal for British cyclo-cross racer Helen Wyman as she kicks off her European season.
Wyman was ranked 10th in the world going into the 2016-17 season but after breaking her collarbone in October and suffering with an infection she dropped down the rankings, meaning she has to start World Cup races from several rows back on the grid.
She told Cycling Weekly that following the injury she had even prepared herself for the possibility that she might not have been able to continue.
“I had to prove to myself that I could get fit enough to start with and then I had to prove I was capable of getting results — getting second in Hoogstraten made me think I can do this,” she said.
This season so far she has placed 16th in the first round of the UCI World Cup in Iowa and 25th at the second in Waterloo, Iowa. She also picked up a third place at a non-world Cup race in Ronse, Belgium, on Sunday.
Wyman said: “Winning races is what I love. My world ranking is down to around 31st. For the last 10 years I’ve barely been off the front row [of the grid], now I’m third row or fourth row and you have to learn to race from there.”
She added that the muddier laterseason races would give her more chances to get in the front group and win because the racing would be slower.
When asked if she had specific races she was targeting, the nine-time national champion said: “I want to win the Nationals. I’m sure Nikki [Brammeier] wants to win it as well.”
Wyman’s 2017-18 season comes as she searches for a new title sponsor — around ¤10,000 a year — as Kona ends its deal on January 1. However, all the other sponsors have signed new twoyear deals and even a crowdfunding effort from the Central Cross League is set to take some sponsorship rights.
“In Belgium the women get 6-700,000 viewers and in terms of market share it’s more people than watch Eastenders,” Wyman said. “We’re getting 50 minutes to one hour of coverage. Being British you’re looking to work with the British market so you’re looking for companies that work in Britain and Europe ideally.”