Jolanda Neff (Trek Factory Racing) will take a three-month break from cycling to recover from serious injuries sustained in a crash while mountain biking in Pisgah Forest near Brevard, North Carolina in December.

After another week in the US, the former world champion will return to his home in Switzerland to consult with his doctor before making plans to compete again.

"I will not race until the end of March," Neff said in a team press release. He will return to Switzerland next week to make future plans with Swiss Olympic team doctor Patrick Noack. The more rest he gets, the faster he will recover."

On December 22, while training in the Pisgah Forest, Neff misjudged a downhill corner and fell off her bike at high speed, suffering a ruptured spleen, broken ribs, and collapsed lung.

She was treated at a nearby hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, and released after three nights.

To stop the internal bleeding in her spleen, Neff's emergency medical team used a technique called embolization, which avoided the need to remove her spleen. However, Neff revealed that although the spleen would remain in his body, it was no longer alive.

"My spleen is still in my body, but it is dead," Neff said. 'There is no more blood flow to the spleen after the embolization procedure that blocked the artery to stop the bleeding. The spleen is still in the body, but it is dead," he said. [The spleen is important for the immune system, but you can live without a functioning spleen. Now we have to be very careful not to burst the plugs in the arteries. If it does, internal bleeding will start and I will need emergency surgery."

It is unclear how these injuries will affect Neff's cross-country season or her bid for next summer's Tokyo Olympics. She was originally scheduled to compete in the UCI Cyclocross World Championships in Doubendorf, Switzerland, on February 1.

However, after consulting with her doctors, Neff made it clear that she would not return to racing until March and that her priority was to heal fully.

"I can't raise my blood pressure for the next three months because I need to be very gentle with the arterial plug," Neff said. 'The medical staff advised me to stay mostly still for the next three months to make sure my blood pressure stays really low.' As an athlete, I hope to recover a little faster and be able to start cycling within three months."

Neff was hospitalized for three days after the accident and is now in the care of her boyfriend and his family in North Carolina.

"I got so much support and love from everyone, it was really overwhelming," Neff said. 'Everyone responded right away and gave me the best care possible.'

"This was an injury on a whole other level, and I'm so lucky that it didn't get any worse. I am so grateful for the care my boyfriend and his parents gave me."