Olympic Champion Kristen Faulkner will begin her season this weekend at Sanremo Women. After delaying the start of her 2025 season in order to recover from a concussion, Faulkner is ready for her first race of the year. She is motivated to start with the return of Sanremo to the women’s calendar:
It’s a race I’ve really wanted to do since I heard it was going to happen this year. It’s just really exciting to be at Milano-Sanremo and be a part of the revived women’s edition. In my cycling career, I came into the sport at a really interesting time because there have been a lot of firsts: the first Paris-Roubaix, the first modern Tour de France, the first modern Milano-Sanremo. Every year there’s some new race added to the calendar and it’s really exciting to be a woman in cycling because of that. Having Milano-Sanremo added to the calendar just furthers the legitimacy and professionalization that’s happening in women’s sports. I’m really excited that I can be part of the first edition and part of the bigger movement that’s much greater than any individual’s performance on the bike,” Kristen said.
Faulkner has had to delay her season start to ensure her recovery from concussion:
“I’m finally feeling better, which is so nice,” Kristen said regarding the concussion she suffered after a crash while training last December. “The recovery process was very up and down. I thought I was good and then I went to team camp and I had to leave team camp early. From the team’s standpoint, it was better just to make sure I was fully recovered and not put a timeline on it, not put pressure on me to perform at any upcoming race. Just be 100 percent healthy and ready by the time I get back. I felt like I was allowed to let my body heal on its own timeline which is really important. I appreciate that the team said, ‘No pressure. Let’s let your body do what it’s going to do and we’ll put you in racing when you’re healthy.’ So I didn’t have any stress or pressure to get back to racing right away.”
While Kristen had initially hoped to return to racing sooner, she does see an upside to starting her season later than usual.
“It means I’ll have a better second half of the season. Normally, I’d come in and have a good classics campaign and this year I’m actually sitting out of the cobbled classics and focusing more on the Ardennes and the Vuelta. So, Milano-Sanremo will be a really good chance for me to get back in the peloton a little bit later than normal,” she said.
She has also announced her race programme for the next few months:
Kristen Faulkner’s spring calendar
Milano-Sanremo
Brabantse Pijl
Amstel Gold Race
Liège-Bastogne-Liège
La Vuelta Femenina
