Cycling: Ulmer, Roulston back on bikes but future unclear

Sarah Ulmer

Champion cyclist Sarah Ulmer is back on her bike but her future is unlikely to be any clearer until after a three-month rehabilitation period.

The world and Olympic champion has had a series of frustrating back problems that forced her out of the Commonwealth Games time trial and the recent world championships.

She has consulted experts at the Australian Institute of Sport about the problem.

Bike NZ high performance director Michael Flynn said yesterday that Ulmer was on a strict three-month recovery and rehabilitation programme. She was riding at what she would consider 50 per cent both in terms of quantity and quality, he said.

"I would love to say it has been a fantastic recovery but we will not know until she has been through the full programme."

National track coach Terry Gyde said BikeNZ was adopting a cautious approach with Ulmer and top road and track rider Hayden Roulston, who - despite a life-threatening heart disorder - had ridden and won a race in Christchurch on the weekend.

Gyde said that for both athletes, it was a case of one step at a time.

"Clearly, Sarah has had the injury issue for some time and all she is trying to do is ride her bike.

"She can't plan out a programme until she finds she is capable of training. We don't want to see the same thing happen as with the Commonwealth Games."

Ulmer pulled out of the Games time-trial moments before the event began when she decided she was not capable of being competitive.

Gyde said that Ulmer was being treated for a medical problem, something completely unrelated, and it appeared to be also treating her back problem to the extent it had allowed her to resume riding.

"I have spoken to her briefly and she has been having some treatment which appears to be going along okay.

"We [BikeNZ] are not going to jump the gun and say 'Yep she's back', until we are absolutely 100 per cent convinced that she is over her problem.

"And at this stage, we are not 100 per cent convinced.

"She's on a treatment that appears to work; she's riding her bike without too much discomfort and I guess we will see in the next two to three months whether she will have a try at the road season or not."

Commonwealth Games silver medallist Roulston's win in the 115km round-the-gorges race in Canterbury only a month after being told he had to quit competitive cycling because of a life-threatening heart condition "was amazing" Gyde said, considering he had beaten elite cyclists such as Marc Ryan and Hayden Godfrey.

Roulston, 25, suffers from arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia (ARVD), a cardiac disorder which causes abnormal heart rhythms, which can become fatal under the stress of a race.

"He has spoken to Michael Flynn and they have downloaded the heart rate data and there's nothing of concern so far," Gyde said.

"So he's on some form of treatment that appears to be helping him ... but where it takes him I don't know," said Gyde, adding that concerns over Roulston remained.

"I guess he is doing it the correct way - basically enter a club race and see how he goes."

- NZPA