Belgian rider Sjef De Wilde is facing a long period of recovery after suffering serious injuries during the crash-marred finale of today’s Scheldeprijs. The Willems Veranda’s Accent competitor was one of several who fell heavily inside the final 100 metres of the race, and was brought to hospital as a result.
He cracked two vertebrae, suffered a fracture in his lower back and also some slight bleeding to his brain. According to team manager Dieter Deprez, he briefly blacked out. “Stef flew over a barrier,” he told Sporza. “After his fall, he immediately got a collar [neck brace]. He was unconscious, but then woke up and had difficulty breathing.”
Because of the cracked vertebrae – with the C1 vertebra being of particularly concern – doctors immobilized him in order to avoid the possibility of paralysis. Deprez said that doctors are considering an operation but that too brings risk; a decision will be made soon.
The crash happened right at the end of the race, which was won by Mark Cavendish (HTC Highroad). Willems moved right to avoid some fallen riders and clipped a barrier; overhead images from the sprint appeared to show the barrier jutted out slightly.
Deprez has said that the rider faces a long rehabilitation.
Another who faces a period of time off the bike, but who fortunately was not as badly hurt, is Sky Procycling’s Edvald Boasson Hagen. As detailed earlier, the Norwegian rider crashed and then hit a tree. He too was briefly unconscious, and has suffered three broken ribs.
Boasson Hagen has been ruled out of Paris-Roubaix and according to media reports, could be sidelined for five to six weeks. He already missed some races this season due to injury issues, and his absence is a blow to the Sky team.
VeloNation wishes both riders a speedy recovery.