'My body said stop' – 24-year-old pro cyclist forced to retire amid health struggle

Twenty-four-year-old Uno-X Mobility rider Anne Dorthe Ysland has chosen to end her professional cycling career due to a chronic struggle with ulcerative colitis.

The Norwegian was first diagnosed in late 2022 with the condition, which causes inflammation in the bowel.

She had been managing the symptoms with medication, but the treatments have now stopped working, and the pain has worsened, leading her to step away from cycling.

“The doctors have advised me to stop professional cycling ever since I got the diagnosis of ulcerative colitis,” Ysland said in an interview published on Uno-X’s website. “I have tried for years to show them that I can make this work, and I have got so much support from the team. But after this season’s opener in 2026, I understood that this couldn’t work out for me.”

Following her diagnosis in 2022, aged 20, Ysland raced just six days at the start of 2023 before taking almost two years out of competition to look after her health. She began 2026 at the Tour Down Under in Australia, where she failed to finish the second stage.

“I had done so much work, I used all the medicine I could to avoid symptoms, but I was still one of the first riders to get dropped,” she said. “I felt horrible on the training rides and even worse in the races… At that point, I started to give up.

“After coming home from Australia, my symptoms became much worse and the medication stopped working the way it had before. Following new examinations at the hospital, I was told that the inflammation in my bowel had never been more extensive, even while on full treatment.”

Ysland explained that that hospital appointment was a “turning point” for her. “I realised that the medication had mainly been managing the symptoms, while the disease itself had continued to progress,” she said. “When the treatment stopped working, I had no choice but to take a step back and listen to my body.”

Among the Norwegian’s symptoms were severe stomach pain and diarrhoea with blood. The medication she took also suppressed her immune system, leaving her susceptible to colds and infections.

Sharing the news of her retirement on Instagram, Ysland said the decision had been “both heavy and unreal to accept”.

“My body said stop,” she wrote. “Cycling has been a huge part of my life and shaped who I am. Letting go is difficult, but I know this is the right choice.”

Ysland joined Uno-X at 19 years old in 2022, and this year began her fifth season with the team. Her best career results are 6th at Binche Chimay Binche and 13th at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad in 2022. She also raced the inaugural Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift that year, placing 91st overall.

Her Uno-X team manager Thor Hushovd said women’s racing has lost one of its “biggest smiles and best laughs” with Ysland’s retirement. “No matter what hit her, Anne Dorthe kept smiling and helped the team with a great attitude,” he said.