{"id":445188,"date":"2026-01-31T13:10:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-31T13:10:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/445188\/"},"modified":"2026-01-31T13:10:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-31T13:10:09","slug":"i-didnt-recognise-myself-but-little-by-little-im-starting-to-see-the-person-i-was-before-uaes-unsung-hero-refuses-to-let-life-threateni","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/445188\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cI didn\u2019t recognise myself\u2026 but little by little, I\u2019m starting to see the person I was before\u201d \u2013 UAE\u2019s unsung hero refuses to let life-threatening 2025 crash end his top-level career"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n\u201cI didn\u2019t recognise myself\u2026 but little by little, I\u2019m starting to see the person I was before,\u201d he said in an interview with Tutto Bici Web.<\/a>Perspective forged the hard way<\/p>\n

The severity of what happened is never far from the surface when Baroncini reflects on the crash. \u201cThe worst thing is thinking that I could have left a void in my family,\u201d he said. \u201cThe idea of making the people you love suffer breaks you inside.\u201d<\/p>\n

That awareness has fundamentally reshaped his outlook. \u201cAfter what happened to me on 6 August, I realised that in the end the small things matter: the love of family, of my girlfriend and of my friends,\u201d he explained, describing a shift in priorities that only comes when the margin between recovery and tragedy becomes uncomfortably thin.<\/p>\n

The physical consequences were stark. \u201cI had lost 14 kilos. When I left hospital I looked like I\u2019d come out of a concentration camp,\u201d Baroncini said, recalling the moment he was finally discharged from Niguarda Hospital in Milan after weeks of surgery and rehabilitation.<\/p>\n

Even confronting his own reflection became a challenge. \u201cIt took me some time to accept looking at myself in the mirror,\u201d he admitted. \u201cBetween scars and deformities, I was extremely swollen, I didn\u2019t recognise myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Back inside the UAE machine<\/p>\n

Returning to training with the peloton\u2019s benchmark team was never going to be straightforward. But simply being back among his teammates mattered more than any performance marker. \u201cThis was obviously a slightly different training camp, there was more suffering involved, but just being there riding with my teammates was a real joy,\u201d Baroncini said.<\/p>\n

That sense of belonging was matched by tangible progress. \u201cSince getting back on the bike I\u2019ve felt things improving day after day and now I\u2019ve reached a decent level,\u201d he explained, careful not to overstate how far along he really is.<\/p>\n

Before the crash, Baroncini had already carved out a clear role inside UAE\u2019s system. A former under-23 world champion, a winner of the Tour of Belgium, and a rider trusted across stage races and demanding one-day events, he had become a reliable cog in a machine that has redefined dominance at WorldTour level. The challenge now is not reinvention, but restoration.<\/p>\n

Patience over promises<\/p>\n

There is no bravado in how Baroncini talks about his recovery. \u201cIt will still take some time,\u201d he said. \u201cMy aerobic system hasn\u2019t yet returned to where it was, and consequently neither has my endurance.\u201d<\/p>\n

If there is one lesson this crash has reinforced, it is patience. \u201cWith the years I\u2019ve learned to be patient, now I\u2019ll need even more of it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Some hurdles, at least, are already behind him. \u201cThe phases that could have worried me more, like mobility and strength, are already behind me,\u201d Baroncini explained. \u201cMy back and posture are improving.\u201d<\/p>\n

That perspective extends to how he views misfortune itself. \u201cThis recovery is different from the other injuries, because before I would say \u2018what bad luck, another crash\u2019,\u201d he said. \u201cThis time I\u2019m aware that it could have gone much worse, so even in bad luck I was also fortunate.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Filippo<\/p>\n

Baroncini had previously established himself as a key cog in UAE’s all-conquering machine<\/p>\n

Refusing to be defined by crashes<\/p>\n

Since turning professional, injuries have followed Baroncini with unsettling regularity. Asked whether he ever questions why it keeps happening, his answer is blunt. \u201cYes, all the time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

But the conclusion he draws is equally clear. \u201cThe circle sooner or later has to close,\u201d Baroncini said, expressing a belief that this pattern cannot define his career.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to be remembered as the guy who was always crashing or breaking bones,\u201d he continued. \u201cI want people to talk about what I managed to do in sport.\u201d<\/p>\n

That desire goes to the heart of why returning to the top level matters. \u201cI feel I have the potential to do something good, and I already showed that when I was healthy,\u201d Baroncini said. \u201cI can\u2019t imagine ending my career with the idea that cycling took something away from me, instead of giving me something.\u201d<\/p>\n

The internal debate, he admits, is ongoing. \u201cI ask myself whether it\u2019s worth it, but the answer is always yes, it\u2019s worth it,\u201d he said. \u201cThe motivation and the desire to leave a mark are too strong for me to give up.\u201d<\/p>\n

No fear on the bike<\/p>\n

Given the nature of the crash, fear would be an understandable companion on the road. Baroncini insists it has not followed him back into the peloton. \u201cActually no,\u201d he said when asked whether he worries about returning to racing.<\/p>\n

Even in training, that confidence has returned quickly. \u201cEven during the training camp, on descents, I stayed calmly on the wheel of my teammates,\u201d he explained. \u201cAfter accidents like this, you have to be able to reset, and I think I\u2019ve managed to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

That ability to reset is central to the next phase of his recovery.<\/p>\n

No shortcuts, no dates<\/p>\n

Baroncini is deliberately resisting the temptation to attach himself to a fixed comeback date. \u201cIt wouldn\u2019t be right to plan a specific return,\u201d he said. \u201cThe first objective is to become myself again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Only then will racing enter the conversation. \u201cOnce I\u2019ve recovered my performance, then we can start talking about a return to racing,\u201d he explained. Progress so far has been faster than expected. \u201cNobody expected me to be training with my teammates already in December,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n

Quiet optimism remains. \u201cDeep down I hope to be back in the peloton in March,\u201d Baroncini said, before reiterating the uncertainty that still defines his situation.<\/p>\n

Supported, not rushedThroughout the process, UAE Team Emirates – XRG<\/a> have removed one potential source of pressure entirely. Just days after the crash, the team confirmed a contract extension through to 2027. \u201cThey give me great peace of mind,\u201d Baroncini said. \u201cThey\u2019re not putting me under pressure, they\u2019re only thinking about my full recovery and giving me maximum support. That was by no means guaranteed.\u201d<\/p>\n

The backing has been personal as well as professional. \u201cThe team was extraordinary,\u201d he said, recalling visits and support from teammates, staff and management during his hospital stay.<\/p>\n

A simple goal<\/p>\n

Asked whether there is a particular race he dreams of returning at, Baroncini\u2019s answer strips everything back to its essence. \u201cNo, I have no preferences,\u201d he said. \u201cWhether it\u2019s the Tour of Flanders or the worst race on the calendar, the only thing I\u2019m looking for is the rider I was before the crash.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt that point,\u201d he added, \u201cI know for sure that I\u2019ll be happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

For UAE Team Emirates – XRG<\/a>, that rider was already a proven, trusted component of a historic winning machine. Baroncini\u2019s fight now is not just to race again, but to reclaim his place inside it \u2014 on his own terms, at the very top of the sport.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cI didn\u2019t recognise myself\u2026 but little by little, I\u2019m starting to see the person I was before,\u201d…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":445189,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,157078,82,157079,129545],"class_list":{"0":"post-445188","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-cycling","11":"tag-filippo-baroncini","12":"tag-sports","13":"tag-tour-de-pologne","14":"tag-uae-team-emirates-xrg"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445188","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=445188"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445188\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/445189"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=445188"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=445188"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=445188"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}