The New Queen of Australian Enduro: Elle De Nooyer

The recent Enduro National Championships in Collie, WA, yielded some surprising results. While no one would doubt Luke Meier-Smith’s dominance in the elite men’s field, the women’s field saw Toowoomba rider Elle De Nooyer take the win in a tight battle for the green and gold stripes. De Nooyer backed up her National Championships win only days after also nabbing the Oceania Championship jersey, also at Collie.

De Nooyer had previously finished top-10 at the UCI Downhill World Championships in the Junior category and seemed to have the world at her feet, but her upward trajectory was stifled with a horrific crash at Crankworx Cairns in 2022. 

Since then, De Nooyer has been working on the comeback, channelling her passion and drive into time in the gym, on the enduro bike, and even embracing the road miles. Her comeback has seen her travel overseas to taste the Enduro World Cup earlier this year, but she has been quiet on the racing front at the back end of 2024…until now.

After her comeback win, we checked in with Elle to discuss the race, the long process of getting back to form, and what’s next for the emerging Enduro superstar.

Hi Elle, congratulations! Firstly, tell me about the Enduro National Championships. Before this breakout win, you hadn’t recently done much on the race scene. Heading to WA, did you expect to be at the pointy end?

Not really, because I haven’t been racing too much. I’ve been mainly focussing on fitness. I wasn’t really sure where I would sit with the other girls. So I was going into not very much blind as to what the outcome could be.

When did you realise that you were actually going pretty well? Were you checking on the timing during the race?

There was actually no timing at all so I had no idea! I got to the end of the race and was like “oh yeah I feel really good, I have no idea how this is going to compare but I feel good, this is a good race”. And it turns out the result reflected that!

So what did your prep look like into enduro ants?

Leading into Enduro Nationals, I had been doing a lot of road cycling, and a lot more longer rides on the enduro bike than I had previously done before. Having that fitness that I hadn’t had before really paid off.

I’d get to the top ready to drop into a stage, and I felt so fresh. I have been really enjoying road cycling too, so I get the best of both worlds.

There is a really good road scene up here (in Toowoomba), and I am very fortunate to have good trails here at home as well.

So tell me, how did the day unfold in Collie?

In Collie, we had a nice big road transition to the furthest stages. It had a really steep liaison between all the stages on that side – which was challenging. The first few stages were really rocky and technical, and we had a long, physical, really pedally stage in the middle of it all. 

The first stage was a double black, really technical, rocky stage; having that first up was a bit of a wakeup call, but it was fun. They were very similar to my local trails. The hill is bigger here in Toowoomba, but similar when you put it all together.

That was quite challenging having that first up. Then the last three stages were a mix of flow and technical, but they were all fast tracks.

So after getting through all that, how did it feel to find out that you had won?

It was crazy, and I didn’t believe it. At first, I was shocked…but I also felt proud. I wasn’t sure how I would go with both races…I was like, “there is no way I can back this up” (ed: after Oceania Championships, a few days prior). It was close at Nationals, that’s for sure

With such an epic comeback take, do you have plans to take the jersey overseas?

I would like to, but I don’t have things locked in yet. If I can go overseas and represent Australia, that would be amazing.

Would you be looking to do Enduro or Downhill overseas? Both?

I think Enduro. I think my body is very much in an Enduro state, so if I can keep that going and go overseas for Enduro, that would be the goal.

It’s not been smooth sailing for you. You’ve had a couple of years of setbacks…from the highs of a top-ten at the junior Downhill World Championships worlds to a bit of a life-altering crash at Crankworx Cairns, casing the first jump on the Dual Slalom course; tell us how that process has gone for you. 

I haven’t seen any footage of the crash; I only remember bits and pieces.

I’ve spent just over a year recovering from the crash at Crankworx Cairns in 2022. I had broken three vertebrae, three ribs, and my collarbone. I did my ACL and had quite a bad concussion. So I had a multiple-step recovery over the year to get to a state where I could actually train again. 

I worked really hard to go back to ‘normal’, and put in a lot of work to get my fitness and strength back. It’s been a really tough, long two years of putting in so much work. But it’s paid off, and I am just so happy about it.

It’s been a long, slow burn; what’s kept you motivated through all this?

Well, I really like Enduro riding. I love riding my bike, and I just…I guess I made a commitment to be able to do that and do well within a certain timeframe. So, I just have a strong goal of just riding my bike.

So most of your drive is just enjoyment riding your bike? Do you have any other driving factors or motivations that you can identify?

That’s a really hard question. I have always wanted to do well, whether that’s Downhill or Enduro. I went into Enduro as part of my recovery. I was doing a lot of fitness, a lot on the road bike. And as part of that initial recovery, I was like, ‘Oh hey, like my fitness is improving, I have the downhill skill, Enduro would be perfect.’ 

So it was a part of the recovery where I was like, ‘Yep, Enduro is where it’s at’, and it took like a good 8 months, with Enduro nationals as the goal.

So I guess it was…the recovery and racing again at this level, it was improv. It just came naturally. Weird answer but yeah, it just came to me.

Having such a big accident changes your life; it would be motivating just to have something to work towards as well?

Exactly, it took my mind off a bad situation. I had lost pretty much all of my muscle in my legs, so it was a lot to gain that strength back; I had to do heaps in the gym.

Are we likely to see you at the National Downhill rounds this summer?

There is the Toowoomba Downhill National round; being a local race, I am super keen to do that one. As for after that…I am not too sure. We will see how we go! I may make a comeback to Downhill, or Enduro may be it!

Thanks for your time, and we can’t wait to see what 2025 holds for you!

Elle would like to thank Dharco, KWT and Maxxis for their ongoing support. She also wanted to shout out Trek Australia, who helped Elle out with a bike for nationals.