Brian Cookson, the former president of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), believes the sport needs to reevaluate itself after a devastating crash during the Tour of Poland involving Dutch cyclist Fabio Jakobsen, who is fighting for his life.
Cookson believes that cycling needs to ban downhill finishes, like the one in the first stage of the Tour of Poland, especially after Jakobsen collided with fellow cyclist Dylan Groenewegen.
Both riders were approaching the finish line when Groenewegen started to suddenly move closer to Jakobsen, who was pushed against a security barrier, which gave way and Jakobsen flipped high in the air and landed hard on the pavement.
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Jakobsen, who is currently in a coma, needed to be revived for an hour, and he had a five-hour surgery on his head and face following the crash in the city of Katowice in southern Poland.
“Everyone concerned has got to take a hard look at themselves,” Cookson told Sky News. “From the UCI, to the riders, to the race organizers. I’m as terrified as anyone else watching that crash, it was really horrendous.”
Here are some photos of the crash:
Sprinting for the win Dutch cyclist Fabio Jakobsen, left, hits side barriers at the start of a crash with his countryman Dylan Groenewegen, 2nd left, on the final stretch of the opening stage of the Tour de Pologne race in Katowice, Poland, on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Tomasz Markowski)<br>
Cyclists are injured in a crash on the final stretch of the opening stage of the Tour de Pologne race in Katowice, Poland, on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020. (AP Photo)<br>
Dutch cyclist Dylan Groenewegen crashes to the ground as a bicycle is flying overhead in a major collision on the final stretch of the opening stage of the Tour de Pologne race in Katowice, Poland, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Tomasz Markowski)<br>