Martyn Irvine suffered a muscle separating from the bone and ended up back on crutches after his Gent Six Day crash (Photo: Michael Meade)
By Shane Stokes
Martyn Irvine has said that he was far more affected by his crash in the Ghent Six than he initially anticipated, ending up back on crutches for the second time this season.
However the world scratch race champion believes that he has sufficient time to return to strong form and to be able to fight for another gold medal in February’s worlds in Cali, Colombia.
The Ards rider spoke to Sticky Bottle this week from his UnitedHealthcare team’s training camp in Arizona, and revealed the extent of the damage he suffered when he crashed on November 19th in Belgium.
“I had an MRI in SINI [Sports Institute of Northern Ireland – ed.] before heading to the camp. The doctor’s advice was to not go,” he said. “There was a muscle separated from the bone in my hip, and it was agony for the first ten days.
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“I was on crutches again. I'm still feeling the effects. My training was all steady miles, easing back into it.”
Irvine made history on February 21st when he became the first Irish rider since Harry Reynolds in 1896 to win a senior world championship track title.
His victory in the scratch race at the championship in Minsk came just over an hour after he took silver in the individual pursuit, and the proximity of the two medals, plus the manner of his victory, led to substantial praise at the velodrome and in the international press.
Exactly a month later he crashed out of the Tour of Taiwan. The fall saw him suffer a bad fracture to his femur and be sidelined for several months.
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Irvine began racing again in August and made an impressive return to form, netting third in the omnium race at the European championships and winning the points race in the Manchester World Cup.
However his Ghent Six Day crash interrupted his momentum and has set him back by several weeks. Now, nearly a month later, he feels like he is making some progress again.
“My last week or so have been good but I've yet to feel good,” he said this week. “I came to the camp a couple of days early and did one to two hour rides by myself. Even that was uncomfortable.
“It’s one hundred percent clear the crash has affected me. I haven't been able to do the work load in the gym that I would have, there is still a weakness in my leg.
“Manchester [prior to his latest crash –ed.] proved I'm able to suffer and race hard, but it was unhealthy! I don’t have a lot of depth. But I'm confident that I'll get back to top form come February.”
Irvine’s UnitedHealthcare team confirmed in October that it was keeping him on, showing good faith after he missed much of the road season due to his fracture. It is hoping to secure a wildcard for the Giro d’Italia and, with Irvine having grown up close to Belfast, knows that having him on board enhances its chances.
It is also hoping that he can again shine in the world track championships. Because of that, UnitedHealthcare has fully backed his desired programme. “My plan is all track up until the worlds. The team have give me the green light until then,” he said.
After that, he will turn his focus again to the road. That point is still nearly three months away and his schedule will be finalised closer to that time, but it’s possible that he will return to the same event which brought him a lot of frustration this year.
“Most likely my first race back will be Taiwan,” he reveals. “If so, it’ll give me a chance to bury some demons….”
Until then, though, his focus will be completely based around the velodrome, getting ready for Cali and chasing another rainbow jersey there.
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