One Eye, One Goal: Linda Lindberg’s Road to UTMB

# Quick summary Linda Lindberg learned in late October that a mole in her eye was a highly suspicious choroidal melanoma. Because the tumor sat around the optic nerve, standard brachytherapy wasn't possible and she underwent surgery to remove the eye. Despite the shock and a short period when running was prohibited, she kept UTMB as her objective and returned to finish the race nine months after surgery.

# Timeline and immediate choices Lindberg's diagnosis came with no prior symptoms. After the optician noticed a mole, specialists confirmed a malignant melanoma. With brachytherapy off the table, enucleation was the remaining option. The surgery took place a week after she ran Kullamannen by UTMB, a 100-mile race in November, which she completed while mentally processing the diagnosis.

# Racing through crisis Rather than withdraw, Lindberg used the 100-mile race as a mental refuge. She focused inward, treating the race as a way to channel fear and take back agency. She finished sixth among women and first in her age group. That result gave her an early psychological win before surgery and rehab.

# Rehabilitation and progressive training

Technical and neurological retraining took priority. Her brain had to relearn depth cues, distance judgment, contrast perception, and compensate for a reduced visual field. Mountain biking in spring accelerated adaptation by forcing rapid visual-motor responses. Over time, technical trail running became less mentally exhausting as her visual system adapted.

# Racing results on the comeback Five months after surgery, Lindberg ran the Istria by UTMB 42k and finished eighth among women while winning her age group. That race served as proof that her training approach and visual retraining were working. In August, nine months after surgery, she finished UTMB in Chamonix, achieving the goal she had held through diagnosis and recovery.

# Practical takeaways for runners facing medical setbacks

• Use staged training: low-impact cardio (bike), incline walking, then gradual running.
• Treat visual or neurological changes as trainable skills: high-speed cycling and technical terrain force fast adaptation.

# Final framing