For Joëlle Numainville, recovery after her Gila concussion is yielding ever-stronger results

2013’s Tour of the Gila didn’t go as well for Joëlle Numainville as it could have.

That year, she crashed out of the competition, sustaining a concussion that took seven months to be diagnosed. As a result, she was forced out of the saddle while matters remained in flux, and in waiting for the diagnosis that finally came, lost months of progress. When she joined Bigla Pro Cycling earlier this season, making up for lost time was her focus. Her priority, she said, was returning fully to fighting strength, and it’s gone well for the Canadian rider.

“This year was the first time I was back at 100%,” she said. “It took about a year and a half to recover from the concussion.” The hardest climb of her season being the one that took her back to full health, her 11th-place standing at the world championships — something that may not make headlines, to be fair — was all the more meaningful, especially after rides earlier in the spring that she describes almost as false starts.

“I came from a little far back with the concussion during the spring classics,” she said, “so my level wasn’t where I wanted it to be, but I have taken huge steps forward by the end of the year. I want to keep the momentum going and I am ahead of where I was this time last year. It’s a big step forward.”

Considering how difficult things became for Numainville, that 11th-place world championship standing was a glowing testament to her strength, showing the progress with which she’s returning to the top-tier competitive prowess so long identified with her. However humble, Numainville is confident in the same, having seen a change. “I think I did a good race at worlds,” she said, “and it gave me motivation. I’ve been improving month after month and I think I will take another step up next year. It’s great to finish the year off on a high. It’s the most important race of the year.”

During the off season, as she waits to roll out with Bigla in 2016 — which, at the start of that season, will be known as Cerevelo Bigla Pro Cycling — Numainville’s concentration, she says, has been more academic than athletic.

“I’ve been studying and writing exams during the off-season,” she said. “I use that time to get a lot of my schoolwork done. For me, education is super important and it helps me be more balanced. I’m passionate about economics and finance and I can see myself doing that after cycling.”