Track cyclist Matthew Glaetzer recovering from cancer surgery
The Australian received a shock diagnosis after doctors investigated his complaint of a sore neck

The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Thank you for signing up to The Pick. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Former track cycling world champion Matthew Glaetzer was on his way back to Melbourne Airport after testing some equipment he was hoping to use at the 2020 Tokyo Games the next year.
However, he then received a phone call while sitting in the back of his taxi informing him he had thyroid cancer.
Glaetzer thought he had strained his neck during a leg press exercise in the gym, but after being attended to by doctors, they found a couple of nodules on his thyroid gland that shouldn't have been there, and after an ultrasound he was told it was "looking cancerous".
“I was checking my phone waiting for a call, then driving to the airport I got it saying ‘it’s positive for thyroid cancer and we need to start the process of dealing with it’," Glaetzer told Adelaide Now.
“You never want to hear that you’ve got cancer, it’s got such an ominous connotation to it and it’s pretty heavy, and I’ve got the taxi driver next to me when I’ve just been told. You need to take a moment to be like ‘OK’."
Luckily, Glaetzer's cancer was very treatable and had a very encouraging prognosis, combined with the fact it was caught early.
The 27-year-old had a thyroidectomy and neck dissection last week and will start taking radioactive iodine tablets in six weeks, which he doesn't expect to disturb his cycling career as he will be back on his bike within days.
"One of the first thoughts I had in regard to my cycling career and Tokyo was ‘I’m not going to let this stop me’, if I am able to and if it’s safe to, then you know what? I’m not going to let this have power over what I do," Glaetzer said.
"I have some goals I want to achieve and Tokyo is the big target, and that hasn’t changed. I’m not going to stop chasing the Olympics and being the best in the world.
"It’s the beginning of the next chapter in my life because I’ll never be the same after this, so it's just about staying calm and knowing there are some really good medical people looking after me."
Glaetzer is a two-time track world champion, having won gold in the Team Sprint at Melbourne 2012 and in the Men's Sprint in 2018 in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands.
He's also won three Commonwealth golds, two in the Keirin in Glasgow in 2014 and at his home Games on the Gold Coast in 2018, where he also won the 1km time trial.
The Australian competed at the Rio Olympic Games in 2016, narrowly missing out on medals after finishing fourth in both the Men's Sprint and Men's Team Sprint.
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Hi. I'm Cycling Weekly's Weekend Editor. I like writing offbeat features and eating too much bread when working out on the road at bike races.
Before joining Cycling Weekly I worked at The Tab and I've also written for Vice, Time Out, and worked freelance for The Telegraph (I know, but I needed the money at the time so let me live).
I also worked for ITV Cycling between 2011-2018 on their Tour de France and Vuelta a España coverage. Sometimes I'd be helping the producers make the programme and other times I'd be getting the lunches. Just in case you were wondering - Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen had the same ham sandwich every day, it was great.
-
-
Tweets of the week: GC Kuss rumbles on as Shimano stars in The Simpsons
The best cycling social media content from the past seven days
By Tom Thewlis Published
-
90-year old ex-vicar breaks record for oldest Lands End to John O'Groats ride
Peter Langford took a month to complete the challenge, raising money for two homelessness charities along the way
By Adam Becket Published
-
'Just don't wreck yourself' - Fred Wright on his GB track gamble and the Olympics
The Bahrain Victorious rider is set to compete at the European Track Championships next week
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Inside the secret race at the Track Champions League
Cycling Weekly lifts the lid on the private points contests ridden out of the spotlight
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'Chris Hoy said the British coaches may be kicking themselves’ - Britain’s lost track cycling champion
British-born Australian Matthew Richardson has fast become one of the world's best track sprinters
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Katie Archibald gets back to winning ways at Track Champions League
The defending endurance champion is up to second after the competition's second round
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Five Dutch sprinters squeezed in a van: Life behind the glamour of the Track Champions League
Now in its second year, the competition takes riders back to their early racing days
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Mark Stewart takes the men’s Endurance classification lead in the Track Champions League
Scotsman Stewart wins the Scratch and places third in the Elimination as Katie Archibald takes women’s Scratch victory
By Owen Rogers Last updated
-
'This is the essence of track racing' - Chris Hoy on season two of the Track Champions League
Six-time Olympic gold medallist says he wishes he had something like this during his record-breaking track career
By Adam Becket Published
-
Ethan Hayter bags second gold for GB on Track World Championships day four
The Brit brought his country's medal tally to seven as he retained his omnium title
By Tom Davidson Last updated