'I woke up in hospital' - 32-year-old Cofidis rider recovering from heart attack

Cofidis rider Wesley Kreder is recovering from a heart attack that left him hospitalised for over a week.

The 32-year-old Dutchman experienced myocarditis - inflammation of the heart muscle - during the night of 28 August, and was rushed urgently to hospital, where he remained until 6 September. 

In a press release shared today by his team, Kreder said he is “so happy to be alive” following the ordeal.  

“I went to bed normally on 28 August and the next day, I woke up in hospital,” he said. “It was really strange to find myself there, wondering what had happened and why I had ended up there. 

“I stayed in the hospital for several days to undergo a number of tests and recover before returning home. Now, I feel good. It’s hard to think that I had a heart attack two weeks ago.” 

Kreder added that he has since been walking outside, but his focus is on resting and taking care of his children, aged six and 12. 

His physical condition is being monitored closely by the team’s medical staff and a cardiologist. 

“The doctors haven’t said that I can’t get back on my bike, and I hope to do so in around one or two weeks’ time,” the 32-year-old said. “Still, it’s too early to talk about the future. I would like to deeply thank my loved ones, especially my partner and my in-laws, who supported me through this ordeal and the medical teams who treated me. 

“Now is not the time to plan ahead but to recover well and enjoy. I am so happy to be alive.” 

Kreder joined Cofidis at the beginning of the 2022 season, having previously ridden for Intermarché-Circus-Wanty. A committed domestique, he has taken just two professional victories in his career, winning the Tour de Vendée in 2012, and a stage of the 2016 ZLM Tour in his native Netherlands. 

He abandoned the Tour of Poland in August this year, although his team have said this was not related to heart issues. 

“It has been decided, together with the staff, to end [Kreder’s] season so that he can recover,” the team wrote in a press release. “It is still too early to think about the next part of his sporting career.

"The whole Cofidis team warmly wishes him a speedy recovery and hopes to see him back on the roads soon."