Olympic triathlon silver medallist Hayden Wilde has hinted at a possible 2025 return to the sport following the horrific career-threatening crash he suffered in Japan in May.
The 27-year-old has been detailing his return from injury in his YouTube VLOG series [embedded and the bottom of the article], with the latest episode showcasing his continued recovery in Salzburg, Austria.
Following meetings with physios, strength and conditioning coaches, surgeons and lung specialists, the New Zealander appears to be ready to amp up his rehabilitation after getting the “all-clear” in relation to his lung injury.
No procedure necessary
Following a CT scan, Wilde visited Priv.Doz Dr Jorg Hutter, a lung specialist, to discuss the next steps in his treatment with a potential surgical intervention necessary.
However, the reduced visibility of fluid in the lung removed the need for a procedure, likely speeding up the recovery process for Wilde as he looks to increase his training output in the coming weeks.
“That was anticlimatic,” joked ‘The Falcon’ when discussing the outcome.
“No operation which is great and no hose going through my back which is even better. The doctor gave us the all clear, he’s really happy on the progress from last week when we got a CT with the fluid shrinking by half.
“Now I can get back to normal and the worst thing I can do now is overdo it and break my ribs again.”
Still a long road ahead
Despite the encouraging news, Wilde’s physiotherapist Jakob Wasserbauer and strength and conditioning coach Elisabeth Obermuller were keen to emphasise that the recovery process remains ongoing.
“We had some issues with muscle activation in the last few days but that’s getting better,” said Wasserbauer when discussing the Kiwi’s situation.
“I’m really happy with the progress we are making there. Also anything sport specific Hayden is doing on his own – that’s really, really professional and that’s something we can learn from Hayden.
“The range of motion is still kind of restricted, we can hopefully progress to elevate higher than shoulder height in all directions and we can push the rotation a little bit more. However, all of it is going really well.”
“Hayden’s been progressing really well in the gym,” Obermuller added. “We’ve been working a lot on lower body power and doing some shoulder rehab exercises. We’ve tried to come up with additional exercises which support his cycling. He has been working really well and could progress a lot pushing a lot of weights.
“He’s in a good place at the moment and he’s able to do more and more in the gym and he’s getting more confidence in the shoulder the way he moves.”
August return date?
It may be a couple of months before we see the Olympic silver medallist on a start line, however, as Wilde pinpointed the latter part of the season for a return.
“Progress wise, ribs are looking good, scapula looking good, it’s all secure. The lung are kind of on the mend which is really, really cool and now it’s just kind of a slow build back to fitness and a full range of motion.
“Maybe something in August, maybe something in September – I don’t really have a goal in mind, but if I can get to something at a good fitness and confident enough to get onto a startline.”
