Yesterday Lotte Kopecky returned to racing and immediately won the national title in the Omnium. The Flemish cyclist returned to the track two months after her spinal fracture, caused by a fall last September 11th, and chose to return to competition at a place of great importance to her: the Flemish Cycling Centre Eddy Merckx in Ghent.

After her victory, Kopecky admitted to having doubts at the start of the race, but then quickly gained confidence in both the scratch race and the time race, overcoming competitors like Katrijn De Clercq, Lani Wittevrongel, and Luca Vierstraete. The Flemish cyclist easily won the elimination race and the points race, totaling 235 points, while the second-placed De Clercq stopped at 129 points, and Wittevrongel took bronze with 116 points.

Next week Lotte Kopecky will also compete in the Six Days of Ghent and is already thinking about the European Track Cycling Championships to be held in February in Konya, Turkey.

Despite a period of forced inactivity, Kopecky was at a level far too high for her competitors in the National Championships, even though she was not convinced of her superiority at the start. "Today went quite smoothly, but this doesn't change the fact that I started with some question marks," the Flemish cyclist said. "I hadn't raced since September, especially not on the track. So, obviously, I had doubts, but today went better than expected."

After her fall last September, Kopecky had announced the end of her season and didn't think she would return to track racing. "I wanted to give my body time to recover. I chose not to commit further by skipping the World Championships because it was practically impossible. I believe it was the best decision to give myself some rest and immediately think about the next season."

The desire to restart was strong, even though doubts remained. After just two weeks of break, the Belgian began her preparation, but with the goal of returning in 2026. "The recovery went well, but the injury still represents a question mark. I had a protrusion caused by a broken vertebra, and the muscles in that part of the body also took a hard hit. For now, things are going well, but I hope it won't affect me when the workload increases and I race more."

Lotte Kopecky will be the female star of the Six Days of Ghent, and regarding her road season, she hopes to return to the group next spring.

"After a difficult season, I think 2026 is still far away, but I can't wait to get back. I hope to return in spring and am already enthusiastically thinking about what awaits me. I think the most important thing now is to restart with the right spirit."