Sarah Gigante announced on social media that she will be sidelined for several months following successful surgery to treat iliac artery endofibrosis. The former Australian road champion and two-time Australian time trial champion will miss the opportunity to chase a national title and also defend her overall win at the Women's Tour Down Under in January.
After struggling with pain in her right leg, Gigante, 24, was diagnosed with endofibrosis on Monday, December 2nd while in Australia.
“Coming into the Aussie summer is usually my favourite period of the whole year, but this time it has been a real struggle for me, both mentally and physically,” the AG Insurance-Soudal rider wrote.
“For a long time now, I’ve had a dull ache at rest in my right leg, but this then increased to brief numbness at max intensity on the bike and, since I returned home to Australia, has become more and more painful to the point that any riding felt impossible. My whole leg, especially my quad, felt like it was being set on fire, even when riding quite slowly.”
“I didn’t know the reason for this and wanted to give myself every chance of defending my Tour Down Under title and doing well in the National TT Championships, so I kept trying to do endurance rides while we searched for muscular or nerve-related causes. My motivation was still sky high and I hoped that I could still recover from my mysterious injury, add in a few weeks of intensity and then be back on track."
Gigante had finished her European road season with the World Championships in September and then added in the UCI Gravel World Championships in October before returning to Australia and once again taking on the 140km distance of the Dirty Warrny on November 9, where she came second. She, didn't, however line up to defend her title at the Tour of Bright at the start of this month, for reasons that are now clear.
“Sadly though, the problem was much more serious than we expected. An ultrasound and some blood pressure tests before and after cycling revealed that my artery was narrowing severely during exercise, limiting the blood flow to my leg. The pain I was feeling was my poor muscles screaming out for oxygen.”
Gigante's team AG Insurance–Soudal said the surgery went well, with the rider now ready to begin her rehabilitation and that she will be able to "count on the support of the Victorian Institute of Sport during her recovery".
Gigante joined AG Insurance–Soudal at the start of this season after walking away from a contract with Movistar after two tough seasons. She quickly achieved success, taking her first Women WorldTour stage win on the way to the overall victory at the Tour Down Under. She then finished seventh in her debut Tour de France Femmes. In October, the team announced a two-year contract extension.
Since launching onto the cycling scene and grasping the elite national road title as an 18 year old, Gigante has had to overcome a litany of challenges – injuries, illness and more – but has also repeatedly clawed her way back to impressive form and that's just what she intends to do once again.
"I’ll come back stronger – having two fully functioning legs will make a big difference,” Gigante said in the team media statement.
