It is proving to be remarkably effective the genuine race against time undertaken by Mads Pedersen to get back on his bike as soon as possible and be able to take part in at least some of the Northern classics, which he loves so much, in the coming weeks.

The Danish rider, who fractured his wrist and collarbone during his seasonal debut at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, returned to training on the rollers just five days after the accident but, being the tenacious guy he is, he didn't stop there and, after another two weeks, he even resumed road training well ahead of the most optimistic predictions made by the doctors.

This return, hardly foreseeable with these timelines, has surprised even his teammates who, as revealed by Mathias Norsgaard to Anders Mielke on the Forhulslir podcast, did not expect to see him by their side so soon.

"One evening, a couple of days ago, he had to squeeze an orange – I don't know if it was part of his training or not – and I saw him writhing in pain, which obviously had to be really strong because it's been less than two weeks since his accident, right?" recounted Pedersen's fellow countryman, well aware that the World Champion from Harrogate, according to what he had been told, would not return to road training before 12 weeks from the injury.

"And yet, during a ride [...], at some point, while I'm tackling a steep climb, I turn around and see a rider in Lidl-Trek kit with a team car following. I immediately ask myself 'who the hell is that?' and then, after getting closer, I notice the rainbow stripes on the jersey. I can say he wasn't pedaling at 300 watts but he was climbing at a pace I was struggling to keep up with. Right then I thought: it's bloody unreal" exclaimed Norsgaard without mincing words, revealing all his amazement at seeing Pedersen on the road so soon and, moreover, in such good form.

Despite this, however, it is difficult to pinpoint the period when the winner of the last two Gand-Wevelgem races will actually be able to return to racing. Pedersen, currently involved in a mini-training camp in Mallorca together with Søren Kragh Andersen, the Vacek brothers and indeed Norsgaard, has undoubtedly jumped ahead of schedule but, considering the type of injury and the risks associated with a potentially premature return to racing, it is difficult (but not impossible) that he will be able to taste the racing atmosphere in March.

Much higher instead, given the progress made, are undoubtedly the odds of seeing him in action in April and admiring him at the start of races like Dwars door Vlaanderen (April 1st), Ronde (April 5th) and Paris-Roubaix (April 12th), but for those as well, there is certainly still a lot of work to be done.