Tom Boonen sought professional mental health counseling after retiring from professional cycling because the demands of the sport left him feeling alienated from his true identity. The 46-year-old former world champion shared his experiences during an appearance on the VTM talk show Happy Hour
, noting that his time in the peloton created an insulated environment far removed from everyday life.
The 17-Year Loop of Professional Cycling
Boonen spent 16 to 17 years competing in cycling, a period defined by intense physical and psychological pressure. During his career, he was the 2005 world champion. However, that singular focus came with a heavy personal toll once he stepped away from competition.
You spend 16, 17 years of your life in a world that isn’t real, where you give everything for it, where you do everything for it,
Boonen said on the program. But you have to recover from that. I had to recover from that for a while. I think that through racing, I had become someone I am not, or someone I didn’t want to be.
Stepping Out of the Cycling Bubble
Reflecting on the stark contrast between the sport’s high-pressure environment and normal daily routines, Boonen described the transition as a difficult adjustment away from constant adulation. Within professional cycling, athletes operate in an environment where daily logistics and support are managed, elevating riders to hero status among supporters.
Traumatic is not the right word, but it’s such an extreme life of highs and lows… you are pulled out of the real world and projected into that racing world, and everything is done for you, you become a hero for many people,
he explained.
Recovery Through Professional Therapy
To process the abrupt lifestyle change and lingering pressures, Boonen turned to professional therapy. He described attending conversational sessions lasting one to two hours over a span of 15 to 30 meetings to reach a healthier mental state. The former rider praised the therapeutic process and encouraged others facing personal challenges to seek similar support.
Those are sessions of an hour, two hours sometimes, where you then come 15, 20, 30 times and eventually you come to a result,
Boonen said. That process is different for everyone, too. But I recommend it to everyone if you have experienced something in your life or whatever. That really helps. I digested everything I couldn’t digest through it.
A New Chapter in Rally Driving
The mental health disclosure follows a major shift in Boonen’s competitive pursuits. Nearly 21 years after securing his iconic world road racing title, he recently became Belgian rally champion for the first time. In media interviews leading up to the title, Boonen discussed adapting to a quieter routine as a homemaker alongside his rally career.
