In January 2022, the former Tour de France champion collided with a stationary bus during a training ride in Colombia, after which he was given a 95% chance of becoming paralysed. Just three years later, he had fought back, returned to the saddle, and won his first Grand Tour stage at the 2025 Vuelta a España. Bernal followed this with seventh place finishes at the 2025 Giro d’Italia, sixth at the Vuelta a Burgos and seventh at the Volta a Catalunya.
