Alvaro Hodeg was scheduled to start the season with his new team, UAE Team Emirates, but a crash in December put a stop to his plans and left him facing multiple surgeries.

The Colombian rider will enter the WorldTour with Quick Step in late 2018, and upon signing with UAE Team Emirates, his first WorldTour team move, Hodeg said he has desire, ambition, and "the same excited feeling as when I first started riding a bike" for the season He said he was looking ahead to the season with desire, ambition, and "the same excitement I had when I first started riding a bike.

However, the work he had done to prepare for that new season fell apart before the year was out.

"I had a serious car accident last December, which unfortunately undermined my plans and illusions of a season with a new team. Today, after more than three months and five surgeries, I'm back, and I'm ready to take on the next challenge."

"Today I was able to walk again and I am happy because I am back on the bike and close to returning to Europe with my teammates. Next Tuesday I have my last surgery on my wrist.

In January, UAE Team Emirates extended Maximiliano Richeze's contract until after the Giro d'Italia, bringing him back to the team to fill the hole left by Hodeg's absence. The team said at the time that Hodeg had suffered a serious injury but was confident he would bounce back strongly later this year.

Hodeg joined UAE Team Emirates on a two-year contract at the end of last year's season and won a stage at the Tour de Ain, won the Grotte Prits Marcel Kindt, and on his 25th birthday, held off Peter Sagan in the first stage of the Tour of Slovakia He took the sprint win.

In an Instagram post, Ryder thanked those who supported him, including his family, the hospital, and his new team, saying he was "getting closer to what I am most passionate about."

"Don't let anyone tell you you can't do something or discourage you from fulfilling your dreams," Hodeg said,

and he added, "I'm not going to let anyone tell me that I can't do something.