Dutch cyclist Fabio Jakobsen was put into an induced coma Wednesday after sustaining head injuries in a crash on the final stretch of the Tour de Pologne race in southern Poland, organizers said.
Sprinting for the win at the end of the event’s opening stage, Jakobsen was sent flying into the side barriers after a collision with fellow Dutchman Dylan Groenewegen.
Jakobsen, who races for the Deceuninck-Quick-Step team, was airlifted to a hospital in serious condition and was put into an induced coma, the Tour de Pologne press office said.
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. The crash began with Groenewegen colliding with another Dutchman sprinting for the win, Fabio Jakobsen, who was hospitalized in serious condition and put into an induced coma. Jakobsen was declared the winner of the opening stage and Groenewegen was disqualified. (AP PhotoTomasz Markowski)
The race's chief doctor, Barbara Jerschina, said that Jakobsen sustained injuries to his head.
Race director Czeslaw Lang blamed Groenewegen for the crash, saying the rider's actions were “not fair play.”
“Groenewegen changed his trajectory, was pressing Jakobsen to the right side and on top of that stuck out his elbow. You don't do that," said Lang, who took silver in the 1980 Olympic road race for Poland.
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, on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020. The crash began with Groenewegen colliding with another Dutchman sprinting for the win, Fabio Jakobsen, who was hospitalized in serious condition and put into an induced coma. Jakobsen was declared the winner of the opening stage and Groenewegen was disqualified. (AP PhotoTomasz Markowski)
Jakobsen was named the winner of the opening stage and Groenewegen was disqualified following the crash, in which a referee and some other cyclists were also injured.
The crash, which happened in the southern city of Katowice, took place exactly a year after Belgian cyclist Bjorg Lambrecht died in the hospital from injuries he sustained when he crashed into a concrete barrier during the third stage of the 76th edition of the Tour de Pologne.
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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. The crash began with a high-speed collision between two Dutchmen sprinting for the win, Fabio Jakobsen and Dylan Groenewegen. Jakobsen was hospitalized in serious condition and put into an induced coma. He was declared the winner of the opening stage and Groenewegen was disqualified after the crash. (AP Photo)
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. The crash began with a high-speed collision between two Dutchmen sprinting for the win, Fabio Jakobsen and Dylan Groenewegen. Jakobsen was hospitalized in serious condition and put into an induced coma. He was declared the winner of the opening stage and Groenewegen was disqualified after the crash. (AP Photo)