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Surgery, rest, rehabilitation and rebuilding form. That has been Florian Lipowitz’s journey over the past few weeks. Together with the Performance Team at Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe, he opted for an ambitious approach: despite the injury, could he still maintain the race schedule originally planned for the second half of the season? 01 An ambitious timeline That plan had identified September 9 as Florian’s first race after the Tour de France, with the Giro della Toscana set to kick off the second half of his season. Despite the crash and subsequent surgery, the date therefore remained an early point of reference – without, however, forcing a comeback at all costs. The first few days after the operation were mainly about getting the rest I needed. After a ten-day period of rest, Florian began his rehabilitation at the Red Bull Athletic Performance Center (APC) in early August. Alongside targeted treatment for his collarbone injury, he soon started completing his first longer sessions on the indoor trainer. “The first few days after the operation were mainly about getting the rest I needed. Being able to start training again was an important step. Of course, after a break like that, you notice that there is still a lot missing. But I could feel progress from one session to the next,” says Florian Lipowitz, reflecting on that period. With Florian, we saw early on that we were making good progress Confidence grew that the ongoing treatment of his collarbone injury and the back-to-training approach could go hand in hand over the following weeks. Training load and volume were increased gradually and continuously aligned with the progress of his recovery. “When returning from an injury, the goal is not to get back to your previous training load as quickly as possible. We have to build load tolerance and performance in parallel. With Florian, we saw early on that we were making good progress and that we could at least consider the originally planned return to racing a realistic goal. But the key is to assess every step based on how he responds to the load – not based on a date in the calendar,” says John Wakefield, Director of Coaching at Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe. 02 From back-to-training to back-to-racing With a structured training plan in place, the focus is now on working towards September 9. At the same time, expectations remain deliberately measured to avoid rushing anything. Combining a one-day race with Florian’s first race kilometres after a long break has one primary purpose: a performance assessment. Training provides valuable data on how his form is developing. But how the body responds to race pace, fights for position, constantly changing demands and several hours of high-intensity racing can only be fully assessed in competition. The comeback at the Giro della Toscana is therefore less about achieving a result and more about establishing where Florian stands ahead of the remaining weeks of the season. “More than anything, I’m looking forward to pinning on a race number again and racing. After seven weeks without competition, I can’t know exactly where I stand. That’s what we want to find out. For me, these first races aren’t about results. I want to see how my body responds to the demands of racing, get back into the rhythm and then decide together with the team what is still possible this season,” says Florian Lipowitz. To build on the initial assessment from the Giro della Toscana and gain further racing load, several additional Italian one-day races are currently being considered: Date Race 9. September Giro della Toscana 10. September Coppa Sabatini 12. September Memorial Marco Pantani 13. September Trofeo Matteotti Which of these races Florian will actually compete in will be decided at short notice, based on the insights gained from each race day. 03 What comes next? Immediately after this Italian block of racing, Florian Lipowitz and the Performance Team will decide together what his program through to the end of the season will look like. The decision will not only focus on which races make sporting sense, but also on which goals remain realistic following his injury-enforced break. If the form is there, I’d really like to race the Worlds – but I’m not putting any pressure on myself about that right now. This will also include a decision on a potential appearance in the World Championship road race on September 27. “Of course, the World Championships are a race that appeals to me. But one thing is also clear: if my form isn’t good enough, I don’t want to take a spot away from another rider. We have a lot of strong German riders who are well suited to the course in Montreal. I want to wait for these first races and take an honest look at where I stand. If the form is there, I’d really like to race the Worlds – but I’m not putting any pressure on myself about that right now,” says Florian Lipowitz.