After an allergic reaction prevented him from being at his best in the defence of his national road race title on Sunday, Jack Bobridge aimed to grab a replacement gold medal in the Australian time trial championships earlier today. However he instead found himself en route to hospital, and must undergo tests in order to determine if he can compete in next week’s Santos Tour Down Under.
“We'll do what's best for Jack and the team once we meet with our doctors and physios,” directeur sportif Matt White said, according to The Advertiser.
As the 2011 runner-up, Bobridge started second to last in the race and rode hard to get up to speed. However within the first kilometre, he was knocked over by a gust of wind caused by a passing truck and landed hard on the ground.
First indications were serious, but his GreenEdge team later clarified things. “Initial reports stated that Jack broke his collarbone,” said White earlier. “These reports now appear false. He has gone to hospital to get checked. He has a hematoma on his arm and elbow. He has hurt himself, and we don’t know much more than that at the moment.”
Bobridge was due to travel to Adelaide and will undergo further scans tomorrow to determine precisely the nature of his injuries and to learn more about his expected recovery times.
His father Kahl Bobridge was travelling in the team car behind him and explained what happened. “The wind just grabbed him and threw him on the ground,” he told The Advertiser. “He was very lucky he didn't hit his face. He would have been up around 60km/h, the adrenaline was going and he was focused.
“When he hit the deck he wasn't real happy but he composed himself and got his breathing back to normal.”
The Santos Tour Down Under race programme begins on Sunday with the Down Under Classic. The race itself begins on Tuesday, giving Bobridge a little extra time to recover if necessary.
The time trial was won by his GreenEdge team-mate Luke Durbridge. Another rider from the same team, Cameron Meyer, was second with Michael Rogers (Sky Procycling) third.