When the editor Simon Richardson called to tell me that Simon Richardson was making another comeback, I have to admit I was slightly baffled. It wasn’t the names – I realised that CW’s Simon was talking about the MBE-sufficed Welsh Paralympian – but I found it hard to credit that a man who has been through so much was pondering a return to racing.
It is hard to know where to start in telling 54-year-old Richardson’s story, so here is a potted history. In 2001, he was hit by a car while training, breaking his leg and his back, leaving him with permanent weakness on his left side. Having been classified as disabled, he went to the 2008 Beijing Paralympics and won gold in the LC3 kilo and 3km, setting world records in both. In 2011, he was hit by a drunk driver and left for dead with multiple injuries including fractures to the spine and a broken pelvis – he has not raced since. In 2017 he had a minor stroke, and in 2019 the metal rods holding together his spine snapped, leaving him in agony. And now, after all that, he is making a comeback.
“A few months after the accident [in 2011] they took the body brace off and my spine collapsed,” Richardson tells me via video call from his home in Llantwit Major, south Wales. “Then it was nine years of operations, on and off.” He returned to riding in 2018 but persistent pain in his torso led to the discovery that the titanium rods in his back had broken and were pressing on his internal organs. “I was on high doses of morphine but it wasn’t doing anything,” he says plainly as if suffering long since lost the capacity to surprise him.
This story is from the May 20, 2021 edition of CYCLING WEEKLY.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May 20, 2021 edition of CYCLING WEEKLY.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Giant TCR Composite Gold
If this bike looks opulent, over the top and über-bling now, imagine the reaction of the bike-buying public 22 years ago when it was unveiled as a special limited edition made with real gold plate and costing the unthinkable sum of $10,000.
WATT WORKS FOR ME Kasia Niewiadoma
The Tour of Flanders runner-up talks lost bikes, altitude training and strength workouts
BREWING A BOOST
Coffee and cycling may be inextricably linked, but does the black stuff really improve our performance on the bike? Lexie Williamson investigates
Soto Helix Coffee Maker - £21.95
I really love the minimalism of this coffee brewer. It's a pour over stripped to its bare essentials: a conical spring that can hold a paper filter, and then compresses nearly flat when not in use.
Stanley Classic Perfect-Brew Pour Over
The Stanley Perfect-Brew Pour Over is the second simplest coffee maker on test, beaten only by the incredibly minimalist Soto Helix.
GSI Mini Espresso Set 1 Cup - £51.50
Starting off with the coffee makers that require a heat source, we have the GSI Outdoors Mini Espresso Set 1 Cup.
How do I up my coffee game?
How does the average Joe make the perfect mug of Joe? We sent Joe Baker to find out
THE HUB
All the news you might have missed from the last seven days
GOING FULL BEANS
Most cyclists enjoy a decent coffee, but some take it a step further. CW meets five self-declared obsessives who have pushed their twin passions, bikes and beans, to the nth degree
A love affair
Coffee connoisseur Adam Becket delves into the storied yet mysterious relationship between cycling and the original energy drink