Three years on from the serious training crash which left her in a lengthy coma, former Dutch champion Amy Pieters and her former team SD Worx-Protime have come to an "amicable resolution" over a contract dispute, it was revealed on Thursday.
Pieters crashed after a collision during a national track team training ride on December 23 in Calpe, Spain. She lost consciousness following the fall, and was taken via air ambulance to a hospital in Alicante.
She underwent surgery to relieve pressure on her brain, before being placed in an induced coma, which was later extended. Doctors then transferred Pieters to a hospital in the Netherlands in January, where she remained under supervision for months.
During that time, she went through neurological rehabilitation treatment. She is able to walk independently, but the impact of the crash is still clear, and Pieters will always need care" due to impaired memory and limited verbal communications.
During her road career she won four stages of the Women's Tour, and the European road race, among 17 victories. She also finished runner-up twice at the Tour of Flanders.
In 2024, Pieters and her representatives took her former team, SD Worx-Protime, to court in the Netherlands, over her contract, which ended on 1 January, 2023. However, this has now been settled, a press release said.
"Amy Pieters (through her administrator) and SD Worx-Protime had a business disagreement over the settlement of the contract after Amy suffered a hard fall in 2021 and could no longer be active as a cyclist," a spokesperson for SD Worx said. "This difference of opinion eventually led to court proceedings.
"Although both parties experienced this as very unpleasant, the personal relationship between Amy and Team SD Worx-Protime never came under pressure. The respect for each other was, and is, great. The parties are therefore pleased to report that an amicable resolution to the dispute has now been reached, allowing the ongoing proceedings to be terminated.
"Both parties are satisfied with the future of the negotiations and the settlement reached and see this as an opportunity to conclude an unpleasant period. Pieters wishes Team SD Worx-Protime every success in the coming seasons. For its part, Team SD Worx-Protime hopes Amy continues to recover.
"Neither side will make any further substantive announcements on the details of the deal."
The release also read: "Amy completed her rehabilitation under the Daan Theeuwes Centre some time ago. The Daan Theeuwes Centre has achieved great strides with Amy, for this Amy and her family are eternally grateful to them. Here Amy has learned to walk independently again and here she has been taught to live as independently as possible. Within Amy's current capabilities, the limits of both her physical and conscious have been pushed. This has provided an expectation for the future.
"However, Amy will always need care. Her memory is severely impaired and talking is not possible, which hampers her continued development.
"It proved incredibly difficult to find a place for Amy, based on her specific care. Amy's memory is very short-lived and she is also still limited to speaking and answering a single yes and/or no."
"Amy is fortunately still a very cheerful woman," it continued. "She is sociable and welcoming in her interactions. At times like these, her loved ones see a lot of character traits back from Amy as before her accident. As long as Amy shows improvements, no matter how small, everyone remains sight and hope for the best possible recovery with a brighter future."
In 2022, a fundraising campaign was launched to support Pieters. The program, called "Amy Pieters: Champion of hearts", was set up "to offer Amy as many opportunities as possible to get the most out of herself".
