Kyle Smith revealed that he was hit by a bus just one day before completing an emotional return from “rock bottom” with third place at T100 French Riviera.

The New Zealander produced one of the stories of the race as he returned to competition for the first time since June and helped animate both the bike and run alongside compatriot, training partner and eventual winner Hayden Wilde.

Smith had already overcome a broken collarbone at the end of 2025, being diagnosed coeliac and debilitating stomach problems which left him questioning whether his career could continue.

Then, after completing his final training session before the race, he was knocked from his bike in a collision with a bus.

But despite waking on race morning with a sore neck and feeling dizzy, Smith decided he had come too far to withdraw.

“I also got hit by a bus yesterday and came off and really hurt myself,” he revealed.

“So I spent four hours yesterday on the physio table just getting myself back right. I woke up so sore this morning and was feeling a bit dizzy and whatever.

“But I just thought, proverbial screw it, I’m going to send it and see what happens.”

‘Nothing was going to stop me’

Smith refused to allow that dramatic final setback to derail a comeback months in the making.

He joined Rico Bogen in breaking clear during the opening bike lap before Wilde, Jelle Geens and Sam Dickinson bridged across.

Smith was still driving the pace at the front late in the bike and then moved into the lead during the opening run lap.

He and Wilde eventually pulled clear of Geens before Wilde made his winning move on the fifth of six laps. Geens overhauled Smith for second late on, but the Kiwi held firm to complete a remarkable podium.

“I just backed myself and believed in myself because there was so much riding on the result today,” he explained. “I never wavered from that belief in myself.

“I felt like I needed this result and nothing was going to stop me. Not even getting hit by a bus would stop me!”

Retirement fears

The collision was only the latest setback in a deeply challenging period for Smith.

After breaking his collarbone at the end of last season, he was diagnosed as coeliac and continued to struggle with serious gut issues during 2026.

Those problems ultimately placed him in hospital and left him so far below his previous level that he began contemplating retirement.

“I’m super happy with that,” Smith said after his podium finish.

“To say four months ago I was in hospital battling stomach issues and, honestly, probably staring down the barrel of retirement because I just never thought I’d come back to this level.

“I lost all the belief that I’d ever come back. I was that unfit.”

Smith credited Wilde and former IRONMAN world champion Jan Frodeno and his wife Emma with helping him navigate that period.

“Thanks to good friends and people around me who really supported me – mainly Hayden, actually,” he added.

“He is one of my best mates, and Jan and Emma Frodeno were my life raft to get me through some tough times.

“Jan just said: ‘What happens if you believe in yourself?’ And apparently, it’s this.”

A friendship forged in New Zealand

Wilde also played a significant role in Smith’s return to competitive fitness after the pair began training together in Andorra.

Although they have followed different paths during their careers, their friendship and rivalry stretch back to their childhoods in New Zealand.

“Me and Hayden, we’re a week apart in age,” Smith explained. “We’re both from the other side of the world, and we’ve grown up together and raced the circuit together.

“I feel like we’ve sort of gone on our paths, but I went up to Andorra because I thought that would be a good fit for me and my training.

“I started training with Hayden and we just got along like a house on fire, and the training really worked as well.

“I think our personalities really gel with each other, and I think we’ve found a good recipe for what’s to come.”

That connection was evident during the run as the two New Zealanders worked together before Wilde told Smith he would pace him to a certain point – after which they would “no longer be friends”.

Wilde duly accelerated clear to retain his French Riviera title, but Smith’s third place carried a significance extending far beyond one result.

Back towards the top

“When you have two bad years, people start questioning your ability,” Smith said. “You’ve got mortgages to pay and a lot riding on results like this.

“So I can finally say that I’m back, and it wasn’t the smoothest ride.”

After the health problems, loss of confidence and doubts over his future, Smith could finally reflect on just how far he had travelled.

“There’s quite a beauty in being at rock bottom because there’s only one way to go, and that’s up,” he added.

“I’ve just been riding that momentum and riding that wave for the last three months.

“Honestly, in my career and personal life outside of my career, I was pretty rock bottom. Now this feels like I’m almost back at the top.”