The Dutch cyclist was taken to hospital with concussion and three fractures to her lower back.
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According to USA Today, Van Vleuten was knocked unconscious by the crash for a “considerable period of time”, Cycling Team Manager for the Dutch Johan Lammerts said.
Van Vleuten was still in the hospital Monday morning, waiting for news of her release. “I think I took a little bit of risk, but not too much, and I think this was the best decision because if you’re on the ground, the race is over”.
They also congratulated Breggen (Van Vleuten’s teammate) who won gold eventually and thanked the organizer, fans, and well-wishers for their support. “I am angry about it”, said Chris Boardman, the former British Olympic gold medallist.
She was just six miles from the finish line when the accident occurred, and video shared by betting site, Spread Ex shows van Vlueten lying on the side of the road.
“I wasn’t comfortable holding her wheel and the pace she was holding on the descent”, Abbott said, “and unfortunately she crashed”.
TV viewers saw her left motionless after the crash, with many anxious for her wellbeing. But, after finishing 20 seconds behind van der Breggen, keeping quiet and cycling fast isn’t quite all that she can do. “The peloton is so small and we all know each other very well”.
“I was really shocked when I saw the crash and it didn’t look good but I had to focus and keep on with the race”, Van der Breggen told reporters.
“It was a horrendous crash”, said Johansson, who added a silver to the one she won in Beijing in 2008. Stevens has excelled in time trials, but she’s also a skilled climber – necessary for Rio. “I actually thought she was dead”. “I couldn’t even see who it was and then an ambulance came flying by me with its sirens on and I was anxious”. She finished 23rd in the road race, so a gold here will be an uphill battle, so to speak.
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The Dutch team’s chief medical officer Cees Rein van den Hoogenband said: “Annemiek went through a total CT scan and is stable now. Hopefully it wasn’t as bad as it looked”.
