Tourist
At the Tour de France there were already several drivers where a concussion was found. They were allowed to continue. When dealing with the topic, cycling struggles.
Stefan Bissegger crouched visibly dazed on the side of the road for a while, grabbed his head and neck. It took a while for the Swiss to get on his bike again.129 kilometers it was still up to the finish line of the first stage of the Tour de France 2025 in Lille.
Around 80 kilometers later, Bissegger finally climbed from his work equipment. Task with suspicion of concussion. The Italian Filippo Ganna also had to end the race on the first day, he also had a concussion, and he had also driven on at first.
A day later, in the medical bulletin of the 2nd stage, the term “traumatime crânien“, Traumatic brain trauma behind the names of the Belgian Lennart van Eetvelt and the Norwegian Andreas Lekness and up. Both had ended the stage and were also in the next morning Valencienne Again at the start of the 3. stage. “I feel good”said Lekness and.
“A disaster can happen”
They are scenarios that experts like to look at with shuddering experts such as sports doctor Helge Riepenhof from BG Hospital in Hamburg. A cycling professional that continues with a concussion and thus takes a life -threatening risk.
“A disaster can happen”says Riepenhof in an interview with the sports show. Because another fall that becomes more likely because of the restricted perception would be fatal. “This is the famous Second impact. The brain gets a second blow and very simple: you can die from that. “
In the long term, concealment of the brain can also cause damage. Riepenhof, who worked for a long time as a team doctor in cycling and professional football and today the German Team Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, knows former cyclists who attribute health complaints to undetected concussion during their career.
The subject of brain conceals has long been concerned with cycling. Riepenhof developed the “Harrogate-Consenses “in which recommendations for action for dealing with conceals were developed.
Minimal compromise For the rules
To do this, however, there should have been pressure on the World Cycling Sports Association UCI beforehand. Because back then, according to Riepenhof, consciousness was not pronounced enough to take the topic seriously and the knowledge was lacking what should be examined when suspected of concealing brain.
The peculiarity of cycling had to be taken into account. Because while the athletes can be examined in ball sports on the edge of the field and simply return when it is all -clear, a cycling professional may miss the connection to the field if it does not quickly sit on the bike again.
Rules for a first test in the race
What came about was a minimal compromise “says Riepenhof with a view of the “Harrogate consensus”. The UCI made it the basis of its rules for dealing with conceals. This includes a quick check on the side of the road that every person can carry out in the racing road. For this, the UCI represents so -called Pocket Cards available that describe what to do on the roadside:
The Belgian Lennart van Eetveld is tested on the roadside
- In the event of unconsciousness, a seizure or vomiting, the driver should be excluded immediately.
- Other symptoms such as headache or neck pain, nausea, weakness or tingling in the arms and legs must be queried.
- A brief test in which the driver has to say how many fingers are shown to him, he has to stand for five seconds with their feet put together and their eyes closed.
If two of these symptoms are given or the test has not passed and the helmet is damaged, the driver must also leave the race immediately. Otherwise he can continue. This will definitely follow the driver on the street. Does he drive a normal line and keep the balance on the bike? There is also a card with instructions for action for this:
- In the event of minimal deviations, the racing doctor must be contacted and a so-called scat5 test will be carried out later by a doctor, the standard is to identify a concussion.
- During the race, the person concerned must also answer some questions, including the question of which races he is in. If the answer is wrong, he must leave the race immediately. This also applies if it does not answer three of the other four questions, such as the length of the stage or the destination. If two answers are wrong, the scat5 test must also be carried out at the finish line.
Criticism by Jonas Vingegaard
However, there are doubts as to whether the system really works. The two-time tour winner Jonas Vingegaard, who suffered a concussion at the Paris-Nizza stage race in the spring, recently complained that the racing doctor did not test him after his fall despite obvious abrasions. The team doctor only diagnosed the concussion at the finish because Vingegaard complained about dizziness.
Paris-Nizza is like the Tour de France from the Amaury Sports Organization (ASO). The protocol is apparently observed on the tour. Norwegian Andreas Lekness and said the sports show that he had to answer questions after his fall. After that he was allowed to continue. The race doctor informed the team that examined him again in the evening.
Cycling professionals always want to go back on the bike
Experts like Riepenhof, however, do not go far enough. Under pressure to make the decision to take a driver out of the race is difficult – especially for untrained personnel. “In a situation in which the leader of the Tour de France says someone, I’m fit, I want to drive, everyone can bend one”says Riepenhof. “It is also not fair that you ask that, they cannot prevail at that moment.”
Cycling professionals are conditioned to quickly get back on the bike after a fall. You train this from childhood. The German Sprinter Pascal Ackermann, for example, fundamentally advocates that there is now a regulation at all. That is an important step. “Because the head is the most important thing we have. We don’t ride a bike without our heads.”
On the other hand, you also have to understand the drivers who had prepared the most important racing for the Tour de France for a year. “And then you only easily turn and fall upside down, have a concussion and have to stop, but you actually have no injury and think, why should I go out now”says Ackermann. “You would need an illoyal man outside of the team or outside of sport, who says: Nah, you don’t drive anymore.”
UCI accepts teams
Riepenhof also calls for an independent assessment, but the UCI cycling association meets this requirement for little love. “We cannot always give responsibility to independent instances”UCI President David Lappartant told the Sports Schau. “The teams and the other interest groups of cycling have to take responsibility.”
Lapp -like is of the opinion that the introduction of the existing protocol was already a crucial step. Experts like Riepenhof, on the other hand, float – as he calls it – “Perfect world” before. The doctor has the idea that drivers where there is suspicion of concussion “Neutralized” can be thoroughly examined in a vehicle equipped with appropriate devices behind the field.
Cycling is still far from such a solution. Riepenhof is nevertheless sure that there will be the next step at some point and draws the comparison to the discussion about the helmet obligation, which was also only hesitant at the time: “We are now in this phase, but the next phase will come.”