Vertebral fractures at Laura Sweet Milk, craniocerebral trauma at Marta Cavalli: Serious falls overshadowed the start of the France Femmes tour.
Laura üßmilch lay crooked on the curb, almost motionless, on the second stage, the German railway world champion was hit hard in the final phase. As a result of a chain reaction, the 25-year-old crashed onto the asphalt and was seriously injured, the Tour de France Femmes is over early for sweet milk.
“She has broken two vertebrae and has to wear a neck brace for the time being”, announced her Belgian team Plantur-Pura on Monday evening after examinations in the hospital via Twitter. The fractures are stable, sweet milk hope “to be able to return to Germany soon”. It is the bitter end of a messed-up tour for the sports soldier.
No luggage and two falls
First her luggage was lost between Munich and Paris, then she fell at the start in the Seine metropolis, suffered abrasions and had a headache. “Tomorrow is a new day”the cyclist from Weingarten wrote on Instagram and highlighted the great atmosphere in her tour diary (“The mood was awesome”) out.
Little did she know it would get worse. Sweet milk was involved in a mass crash 20 kilometers from the destination of Provins. One opponent had lost control, and a good ten drivers fell to the ground as a result. It was particularly bad for sweet milk on her tour premiere, who had won the World Cup and the European Championship with the track four last year.
Giro second Cavalli has to get out
But she wasn’t the only one for whom the day in the hospital bed and the tour ended abruptly. Italy’s Marta Cavalli was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, and the co-favourite, after a fall through no fault of her own – the Australian Nicole Frain had cleared her at high speed – initially continued driving before her team intervened.
“She was in severe shock”, said Stephen Delcourt, manager of Cavalli’s FDJ-Suez racing team. The Giro second had to be prevented from driving the last 25 kilometers to the finish. “We don’t want to play with the lives of our drivers”, stressed Delcourt. You have at that “spectacular fall” experienced again how dangerous cycling is. “It’s really difficult to see pictures like that”according to Delcourt, “I am very concerned about the safety of our drivers.”