Most people dread crashing, but being told she could finally fall off her bike again has reignited Caroline Buchanan's Tokyo dream.
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The two-time Olympian and eight-time world champion has been cleared to ramp up her BMX training as she races the clock to be qualify for the 2020 Games.
Buchanan had a scan earlier this week to determine whether her sternum had sufficiently healed to allow her to increase her gym training, start riding competitively and, perhaps most significantly, crash without fear.
The 28-year-old has been in a career holding pattern for the past 19 months after an off-road accident almost killed her.
She broke her sternum, had collapsed lungs and dangerous bleeding around her heart, putting her career on hold until all injuries had fully healed.
She has suffered several setbacks in the rehabilitation, which has involved three chest reconstructions, 26 bolts, two plates and cables to put her body back together.
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But doctors have given her the "green light" to restart her Tokyo campaign less than a year before the Olympic opening ceremony.
"The once sentence that I kept reiterating to myself is: 'this too shall pass'," Buchanan said.
"There's going to be another hurdle and that's something that has always kept me going.
"I've never overcome a challenge so big in my life. Riding is not a job, this is my passion. Having this accident reminded me of that. It's reminded me why I ride bikes.
"You never know what's around the next bend. Hang on for the ride, it's time to change direction and turn that next corner."
Buchanan was considering a bid to compete in both the freestyle and racing BMX events in Tokyo, but injuries narrowed her focus to her pet event.