Lotte Kopecky will return to competition at the iconic Gent Six Day after a crash and subsequent vertebral fracture in her final road race of 2025 ruled her out of the Track World Championships and racing altogether for two months.
The former two-time road World Champion has been enjoying a mix of recovery and holiday in the days since she crashed out of the Tour de l'Ardèche in September and sustained an injury worse than initially feared.
It's the second season in succession that Kopecky has approached the winter with an injury, with a knee injury hampering her preparation for the 2025 season, so she wanted to change how her recovery was approached.
"Last year, I injured my knee. Back then I just wanted to train ASAP. Which led to setback after setback and in the end running even more behind," said Kopecky on Instagram in September, announcing that he season was over.
"So let’s approach this one right. I’ll give myself the time to let my body and the fracture heal properly."
After some time back on the bike in Lanzarote last week, it appears Kopecky has recovered sufficiently to race again at the long-standing Belgian track event at the Gent 't Kuipke velodrome. The racing in Flanders takes place from November 18-23.
The race announced via social media that Kopecky would be returning to where she has long been a fixture and winner, with the caption "Guess who's back?" on Tuesday. She's set to race on Friday and Saturday in an elimination race and a points race against the likes of Shari Bossuyt and Katrijn De Clercq, and will be hoping for a fourth women's title in Gent in a row.
After racing on the boards once again, the Belgian will look to rebuild into the 2026 road season with SD Worx-Protime, after a rocky season saw her take just three victories, significantly down from the 16 and 14 she managed in the two years prior, with the highlight being a third Tour of Flanders crown.
