The USA's Chloé Dygert (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto) started 2025 at the Santos Women's Tour Down Under and scooped up her first UCI road win in two years, though the tone didn't continue through the rest of the season.
There was another trip to the podium in Australia when Dygert came second at the 1.1 ranked Surf Coast Classic on the coast in Victoria, but that was the end of the podium celebrations for the year.
"Last year was really hard for me on and off the bike," Dygert told the media at a pre-press conference in Adelaide, as she returned to the Tour Down Under to start her season again.
"I've had a lot of years of experience to, you know, let it bother me in the moment and then kind of move on and take a step forward so this year, I'm just looking forward to learning from the mistakes and trying to stay healthy.
"Some of that's out of my control, but there's some things in my control," she added. "I'm really taking that step and making sure that I'm fulfilling everything I can to reach the best potential that I have. I'm sick of losing so this year, I'm really focusing on making sure it doesn't happen much."
The turning point for Dygert was a terrible crash at the 2020 World Championships, where she entered the time trial as defending champion but walked away with an injury to her leg, after hitting a guard rail and crashing on the descent, that she is still well and truly feeling the impact of to this day.
"It takes a toll on my life every day, even even off the bike," said Dygert. "I'll never be the same rider as I was before and to me, that's the hardest thing. Every day I have to wake up and putting my socks on hurts ... It's something you have to live with.
"But I'm very blessed, God has blessed me so much, because I very easily could not have a leg right now. So I'm just happy to be sitting here and doing everything that I can to try to be on that top step."
The mentality may be a little different for the now 29 year old, who is launching into her sixth season with Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto, but the drive to keep pulling in top results to supplement her career total of 23 wins hasn't diminished.
"You let things go when you get older," said Dygert after outlining that even though she won the junior World Championship time trial title in 2015, she could still recite where she messed up. "You grow up a little bit, you take probably a little less risk – no more guardrails – but yeah, the hunger still remains."
The world title may once more be a focus in 2026 but the opportunities to satisfy that hunger start on Saturday in South Australia with stage 1 of the Women's Tour Down Under, which finishes on the lower slopes of Willunga Hill. The racing then heads to the Adelaide Hills on Sunday with challenging terrain from Magill to Paracombe then concludes with a stage that takes riders up the brutal Corkscrew Rd ascent twice.
"I'm happy to be back," said Dygert of the event which will this year have all 14 Women's WorldTour teams on the start line. "It's a great way to open up the season."
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