Chilean cyclist Irene Aravena was competing at the South American Games in Santiago Wednesday when disaster struck.
Chile and Brazil were facing off in the bronze-medal velodrome race when a false start was called by officials. The Brazilians immediately slowed down but the Chileans kept cycling. While one official waved a red flag in front of the starting gate, before casually walking away, Aravena crashed into it and flipped in the air before landing on the ground. Her bike also broke in half. Aravena’s teammate Estefania Nunez can be seen cycling in front of her before veering away and warning her before the crash.
According to one report, Aravena was sent to hospital and had surgery after suffering a broken thigh and kneecap.
Brazil wound up winning the bronze.
It was a completely avoidable injury. You have to wonder why the officials didn’t remove the starting gate until all cyclists were aware of the false start.
