Local athlete Hannah Cutajar has taken to Facebook to share her recent experience with cycling in Malta, after being hit by a truck. We spoke to Hannah, who shared her take on the cycling situation in Malta, and how this experience has affected her life.

“I’m starting to get my head around it which is why I posted. I want to raise awareness. My husband was also involved in a serious accident a few years ago,” she says, saying that now he won’t go near a bike. “For me it’s different, I’m too addicted to give it up. I will however be training indoors more, which is pretty unfair considering that there’s enough space on the roads for everyone.”

“It upsets me that you can’t go cycling in Malta without getting into an argument with a driver or avoiding a near hit. And I avoid main roads. We just need to make people more aware,” she appeals.

“Basically, in my case, the truck just turned off into a side road and didn’t even see me. It’s reckless driving and yet the comments some people wrote on the news article reporting the accident were that it’s too dangerous to cycle in Malta,” she notes. “As an athlete it’s basically a whole season of waking up early ruined. I missed out on national championships which also means that I’ll lose out on some funding if not all for next year. Apart from that I was given a spot to race at super league next weekend, an experience of a lifetime.”

Hannah explains that she’s worked very hard over the years and this accident has taken a toll on her athletic career as well as her social and personal life. “It’s taken years to build my strength up to where I am and at the moment even just walking my dog is a hassle. My life in general has had to come to a standstill and it will be months before I can even consider getting my fitness back to where it was.”

Hannah suffered a fractured clavicle which she’s had surgery on. “They put a metal plate in. I may need to have the plate removed eventually I'm but trying not to think about that.”

“He went home that day to his family and I went to hospital in an ambulance,” she says, referring to the truck driver that hit her. “Luckily my friends, family, sponsors and work colleagues have helped to pick up the pieces.”

“I really hope we can help raise some awareness. All it takes is for people to drive slower and understand that a cyclist is a human being. I’m not the first and I’m definitely not the last. But I’m definitely ready to help spread the word,” she concludes.

We wish Hannah a very speedy recovery!