WCN quicklink >>   Pooley reflects  Carla Ryan and Pascale Schnider return to racing  

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Ryan and Schnider make a return in Montreal 

Carla Ryan and Pascale Schnider both took some time out this week to chat about their time off their bikes, recovering from accident and illness. 

Carla Ryan is a long way from her home in Australia and when she crashed in Gelderland in the early season racing. WCN had a chance to catch up with Carla as she finished her preparations for her first race back in Montreal this weekend.

Carla Ryan

WCN: Do you remember the accident and how it happened?

CR: "Not really. I remember seeing a rider fall directly in front of me and then the next thing I knew was waking up in the ambulance."

WCN: What exactly were your injuries?

CR: "I fractured my jaw in several places, which required surgery,  and was concussed for several minutes apparently."

WCN: What have you been able to do to keep fit?

CR: "Although the jaw fracture was the main injury, the concussion caused more problems with recovery, it took a number of weeks before we were comfortable it was safe to begin training again, so I was limited easy activities during this time.  I have since been able to be back in full training for nearly 2 weeks now."

WCN: Did you manage to get home to Australia to recover?

CR: "No, I had only been back in Europe for 4 days when the accident occurred, and due to the concussion we decided it would be best to stay in Swiss to recover.  The Cervello team support of staff and doctors was great and gave helped with everything I needed to get back to good health as quick as possible.  I had just recovered from being hit by a car in training in Australia so we also wanted to limit travel to enable a quicker recovery."

WCN" What will you focus on for the rest of the season?

CR: "Due to the accident I missed a couple of races I was preparing for however there is still some big races that I will know focus on including Tour of Birra, Trentino, Giro Di Italia, Tour of Ardeche and then World Championships.  But first things first it will be good to finally get back into some races and we will assess were I am at physically after Montreal world cup and tour."

Pascale Schnider has been suffering for a while with her performance and finally she took some time off the bike to get the problem sorted out. WCN caught up with her from the team house in Switzerland.

WCN: What was the reason for your time off? 

PS: "After a few doctor appointments the result was a suspected chronic angina. [They found that] my tonsils were infected and I was always feeling tired and powerless."

WCN: is this the first time you have suffered from this type of illness?

PS: "Yes it was my first injury. It feels weird, because I didn't crash or anything. I was perfectly fine at home but couldn't eat and train. That was hard. But I am glad to have removed the tonsil now and not waiting until after the season."

WCN:  What was the catalyst to getting your problems sorted out? 

PS: "I couldn't do my proper training schedule and I missed all of the spring races. I had to take three weeks fully out of training."

WCN:  What has been the impact on your season?

PS: "My major goals are still coming. I am sure I will be ready for nationals and worlds. I have to catch up a lot, but feel already so much better now after the operation."

WCN: What adjustments did you have to make to your recovery?

PS: "I started training step by step and now i am with the girls in the training camp. I didn't adjust a lot. I went just straight into it."

WCN would like to thank both Ccarla and Pascale for taking time out of their schedule to talk to us. We wish them well with their recovery and good luck in Montreal. 

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