A risky decision

Surgery was the only option, one carrying a 30 percent chance that Dinham might never walk or ride normally again. “It was a bit scary. But I couldn’t live like that. Most days I couldn’t walk for more than a few minutes without pain.” On 13th May this year, surgeons in Sydney operated. Six weeks on crutches followed, then painstaking rehabilitation.

“The first few rides on the home trainer were 50 watts for 15 minutes,” he recalls. “I really had to start from nothing. Eight weeks after the operation I could finally ride outside again and from there I built up slowly: increasing duration then intensity.”

Throughout, friends and medical staff kept him going. “I was lucky to have incredible people around me. My friends in Sydney supported me a lot and made plans which I could still be involved in without stressing the injury. For sure without the team, my doctors and physios, my trainer and coach; I wouldn’t be here. For someone without that support I had, solving this would be nearly impossible.”

Never letting go of the dream

Despite the setbacks, quitting never crossed his mind. “I wanted nothing more than to keep cycling. As an Australian it’s so hard to make it as a pro in Europe, and I’d sacrificed so much. I started racing when I was four years old. I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.”

To fill the empty days, Dinham enrolled part-time at university and even took up some swimming. “I realised how important sport is for me, how much being healthy means. Now, riding again with friends in Nice, it feels like I have my life back.”

Eyes on Malaysia

Dinham’s goals for Langkawi are simple: regain the feeling of racing in a peloton. “I have zero expectations in terms of results,” he says with a smile. “I just want to push my limits again. Honestly, I’ll probably be the most excited rider on the start line. Getting that email with the flight details was surreal. I’ll have to set a reminder, so I don’t miss the plane to Malaysia,” he laughs. Looking ahead, the plan is to finish Langkawi and then Guangxi, build through the winter, and start 2026, ideally at home in Australia, ready to race.

For someone who once mixed it with riders like Pogacar, Van der Poel and Van Aert at the 2023 World Championships, the next step isn’t about podiums. It’s about gratitude and perspective. “If I can look back after Langkawi and know I gave everything, I’ll be happy. I just want to do my best and enjoy being back racing with the team.”

From the icy climbs of rehab to the humid roads of Malaysia, Matt Dinham’s return is a quiet triumph: proof that persistence, patience and the right people can bring a career back to life.