Australia's New Enduro Queen: Elle De Nooyer

The recent Enduro National Championship in Collie, WA, produced some amazing results. While no one can question Luke Meier-Smith's dominance in the elite men's field, the women's field saw Toowoomba rider Elle De Nooyer emerge victorious in a tight battle for the green and gold stripes. De Nooyer backed up his National Championship win a few days after taking the Oceania Championship jersey, also in 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 his feet, but his path to the top was blocked by a horrific crash at Crankworx Cairns in 2022.

Since then, De Nooyer has been working on a comeback, channeling his love and drive with time in the gym, on an enduro bike, and even racking up road miles. His comeback took him overseas for a taste of the Enduro World Cup earlier this year, but he has been silent on the race at the end of 2024…until now.

After his triumphant return, we caught up with Elle to discuss the race, the long process of getting back into shape, and what's next for the rising Enduro star.

Hi Elle, congratulations! First, tell me about the Enduro National Championships. Before this next race win, you hadn't done much on the racetrack. Going to WA, did you expect to make it to the end?

Not really, because I wasn't running much. I was very focused on training. I wasn't really sure where I would live with the other girls. So I was going in very blind as to what the outcome would be.

When did you realize you were doing really well? Did you check the time during the race?

Actually there was no time at all so I had no idea! I got to the end of the race and I said “oh yeah I feel really good, I don't know how this will compare but I feel good, this is a good race”. And it turns out the result showed that!

So what did your prep look like for the enduro ants?

Leading up to the Enduro Nationals, I've been doing a lot of road biking, and I'm riding a lot longer on an enduro bike than I ever did before. Having that resilience that I never had before paid off.

I was getting ready to go down on stage, and I felt it so new. I've also always really enjoyed road cycling, so I get the best of both worlds.

The road conditions are really good here (Toowoomba), and I'm very lucky to have good roads here at home too.

Tell me, how did the day go at Collie?

At Collie, we had a nice transition from the main road to the more distant stages. There was very tight communication between all the divisions on that side – which was a challenge. The first few stages were really rocky and technical, and we had a long, physical, really stomping stage in between.

The first stage was a double black stage, really technical, with rock; doing that first was a wake-up call, but it was fun. They were very similar to our local trails. The hill is big here in Toowoomba, but it's the same when you put it all together.

That was quite a challenge to begin with. Then the last three stages were a mix of flow and technical, but they were all fast tracks.

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

It was crazy, and I couldn't believe it. At first, I was shocked…but I also felt proud. I wasn't sure how I was going to go with both races…I was like, “there's no way I'm going to support this” (ed: after the Oceania Championships, a few days ago). It was close to Nationals, that's for sure

Going back, do you have any plans to take the jersey overseas?

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

Would you like to do Enduro or Downhill overseas? Both?

I think Enduro. I think my body is in the Enduro zone, so if I can continue to go overseas with Enduro, that would be the goal.

It didn't go well for you. You'I've had a few hiccups over the years…from a top ten finish at the Junior Downhill World Championships to a life-changing accident at Crankworx Cairns, leading to a first jump on the Dual Slalom course; tell us how that process went for you.

I have never seen pictures of the crash; I only remember bits and pieces.

I have spent just over a year recovering from an accident at Crankworx Cairns in 2022. I had broken three vertebrae, three ribs, and my pelvis. I did my ACL and had a really bad concussion. So I had a multi-step recovery over the course of a year to get to a point where I could train again.

I worked hard to get back to 'normal', and I did a lot of work to get my fitness and strength back. It's been really hard, a long two years of putting in a lot of work. But it paid off, and I'm very happy about it.

It's been a while, it's been a while; what'Are you staying motivated through all of this?

Yes, I really like to ride Enduro. I love to ride my bike, and I just…I think I make a commitment to be able to do that and do it well within a certain period of time. So, I have a strict policy of just riding my bike.

So most of your driving is just for fun riding your bike? Do you have other driving factors or motivations to identify?

That's a really tough question. I've always wanted to do well, whether it's Downhill or Enduro. I went to Enduro as part of my recovery. I was doing a lot of fitness, mostly on the road bike. And as part of this initial recovery, I was like, 'Oh hey, as if my fitness is improving, I have the ability to go downhill, Enduro will be perfect.'

So it was part of the recovery where I was like, 'Yes, Enduro is there', and it took like a good 8 months, with Enduro nationals as a goal.

So I think it was…recovery and running again at this level, it was better. It just happened naturally. A strange answer but yes, it just came to me.

Having such a big risk changes your life; would it be motivating to have something to work on again?

Of course, it took my mind off a bad situation. I had lost almost all my muscle in my legs, so it was a lot to get that strength back; I had to do loads in the gym.

Could we see you in the National Drop rounds this summer?

There is the Toowoomba Downhill National round; since I am a local race, I am very eager to do that. After that…I'm not so sure. We'll see how we go! I might go back to Downhill, or Enduro would be it!

Thanks for your time, and we can't wait to see what 2025 has in store!

Elle would like to thank Dharco, KWT and Maxxis for their continued support. He also wanted to give a shout out to Trek Australia, who helped Elle bike to the country.