When your body stops producing enough insulin or is unable to use it properly, it can lead to a condition called diabetes. According to a 2024 report provided by the International Diabetes Federation Diabetes Atlas, 1.8 million children and adolescents (<20) are living with type 1 diabetes (T1D) globally.
Diabetes at a younger age increases the risk of complications such as heart disease, kidney failure, and nerve damage over time. Diabetes is challenging, but according to Brais Dacal, a 33-year-old Spanish professional cyclist with Team Novo Nordisk, who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at the age of 7, it doesn't define you and shouldn't stop you from pursuing your dreams.
When you hear ‘you have diabetes,’ especially for a kid, everything changes. However, Brais decided to embrace his condition through sports, competing by age 14. The Spaniard barely remembers a time when he didn’t want to ride all day, every day and as fast as possible. And now, while cycling professionally, he is simultaneously also creating global awareness about diabetes.
The cyclist was in India recently, and in an interaction with HT Lifestyle, he discussed his journey from being diagnosed with T1D to becoming a professional cyclist, the realities of managing the disease, his message to young patients with diabetes, and more.
It has been both interesting and challenging, but mostly, it has been extremely rewarding. We have faced so many barriers, such as stigma, people who believe that type 1 diabetes prevents us from living a normal life. By competing at the best level of professional sports, we have demonstrated that T1D is not a problem or burden for anything in life, as long as you take your medication and work hard for your goals.
I began to compete when I already had six or seven years living with T1D on my back. So, once I decided to give cycling a go, I quickly realised I would need to master my diabetes management. I never thought that it would be impossible. I simply focused on learning quickly what my needs were and how to fix problems, such as keeping the energy levels up or the glucose within an optimal target. I never saw T1D as a burden.
I would encourage them to learn as quickly as possible how to manage this new life. The sooner you dominate your diabetes, the sooner your life will be normal. To the family, I would say: please support your kid and their dreams all the way. They need you to be by their side. You're the biggest reference for your kid - if you give up, they will as well.
Yes. I used to believe it myself, and that led me to keep trying and competing for many years. But for sure, the idea was strongly reinforced when I first heard about Team Novo Nordisk and saw that other riders with T1D were racing at a professional level. I thought, ‘If they can do it, I can do it!’
Back in my country, the stigma was mainly that people believed type 1 diabetes was a dangerous disease, and therefore, you should be careful with what you do. Diabetes is a health condition, as serious as any other, but once you manage it, you can live like everybody else. A lot of awareness was raised in my country, and now almost everyone sees T1D as just one more ‘health condition, which does not affect the way you live’.
You really need to plan and use all the tools and knowledge that you have. Pro cyclists train and race pretty much every day, all year round, so you learn a lot. Then you need to get experience during races. Planning big efforts, adjusting your medication, keeping a careful race nutrition plan, and, most importantly, knowing how to quickly resolve a hypo or hyperglycemia.
There was a time when I had no support from my team, and I started to see my morale dropping. But I was convinced that I could do it. So I searched for support elsewhere, and how lucky I was to find my current team! Sometimes I think that without the lack of support I had in one place, I would never have tried harder. I used that difficult moment to become stronger.
Krishna Priya Pallavi is a journalist with over 9 years of experience, covering health, fashion, pop culture, travel, wellness, entertainment, festivals, mental health, art, decor, fitness, and sex and relationships. She is an alumna of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), Dhenkanal, and holds an undergraduate degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi. Her strong academic foundation informs her analytical and detail-oriented approach to storytelling, helping her uncover stories where none seem to exist. Before joining Hindustan Times, Pallavi worked with some of India’s leading media organisations. She spent close to three years at India Today, where she honed her newsroom skills and developed a sharp editorial sensibility. She also worked for over a year and a half at Vagabomb, ScoopWhoop’s feminist digital platform, where she explored stories through a gender-sensitive, socially aware lens. Pallavi has a deep interest in global fashion trends and international fashion seasons, and enjoys interviewing celebrities and tracking pop culture movements—interests that frequently translate into engaging, reader-friendly stories. Alongside lifestyle and entertainment, she has a keen eye for impactful health and wellness journalism, regularly interacting with doctors, designers, and digital content creators to bring nuance and credibility to her work. Born and raised in Haryana, Pallavi remains deeply connected to her ancestral roots in Odisha. Her ability to spot fresh angles brings curiosity and depth to stories she pursues. When not chasing deadlines, she enjoys spending time with her dog, planning her next vacation, reading, running new trails, and discovering new destinations.Read More
