Fernando Tercero returns to competition at the Giro dell Apennino
The rider from La Mancha, who has been concentrating in Bormio with the rest of Team Polti Kometa, will put on a race bib again this week after overcoming a cytomegalovirus that has kept him out of competition since February.
A different season. Of challenges, of objectives, but above all of illusion to be a cyclist again. After competing in the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, the bad sensations recommended a medical check-up with not at all positive results for Fernando Tercero who was forced to stop. “On the very day that the time trial, which was reduced to the Vuelta a Andalucía, was to take place, I was told that my blood test had some abnormal values. And I wasn’t feeling well either”.
Then, from his home in Valdepeñas, he started a long recovery process that was really hard at the beginning. “They were really complicated weeks, the first few days of forced rest even made you feel like it, because in the end you come from competing and the body is grateful for that recovery. But the days went by and I almost felt worse, that’s when I started to worry”, added Tercero.
The cyclist couldn’t find any improvement: “I woke up and every day had the same bad feelings. Sometimes I’d go for a bike ride and then in the afternoon I’d feel really bad, it’s frustrating”. Moreover, the bad thoughts led him to be pessimistic at times: “You read that certain riders who have cytomegalovirus never recover and you think the worst…”.
But Fernando Tercero also knew how to turn this situation around. With his studies in Agricultural Engineering practically finished, he took the opportunity to hand in his TFG (final degree project), spend time with his family and friends… in short, “keep my head busy and try to be positive about the recovery”, he explains.
A little less than two months ago, he was able to start to get back to normal, training little by little and trying to get back into the routine: “I’ve been introducing specific workloads, like in pre-season. I’ve been trying to build up my strength and recover my level. At the beginning, after three months off the bike, it’s hard work and you notice everything you’ve lost, but the happiness of getting back to doing your job makes up for it,” he says.
The whole process, with the support of the team, has included medical, training and nutritional aspects: “One of the objectives has been to take care of myself, to try not to gain weight so that the recovery would be as easy as possible. Also, my teammates have given me a lot of support”.
From home, Fernando Tercero has had to follow the great season of Team Polti Kometa on television: “The truth is that they have made me enjoy but also suffer (laughs). For example the stage finish in the Giro that Andrea Pietrobon almost won, I lived it very intensely. The team has had a great season and now I would like to contribute to it”, adds Tercero.
“I would love to ride in Lombardy, a pretty tough race that I would like to be in after everything I’ve been through. The idea is to finish the year in the best way possible, with a view to next season. That motivation will help me to keep going”.
At the Giro dell Appenino, Fernando Tercero will again wear a race bib and then he will complete two classics in Spain: Castilla y León as well as the Ordizia race. Wishing for the body to respond. Wishing to be a cyclist again.
