- Female cyclist seriously injured following Town Criterium collision
- Ynys Môn’s Anne Henson suffered a broken collarbone
- Meanwhile race mired in controversy after Jerseys celebrated win only to be informed of penalty
A FEMALE cyclist was seriously injured yesterday when she collided with another competitor during the sprint finish of the NatWest Island Games Town Criterium.
The rider, Anne Henson, from the Welsh Island of Ynys Môn, suffered a broken collarbone after coming off her bike when she collided with a competitor from Bermuda.
She was shielded by her home nation flag as she was treated by paramedics and officials in front of spectators at the crash scene near the Town Hall on York Street.
- Read all of our week’s Island Games coverage here
- Follow our tweets, updates and images from our team of journalists and photographers on our Live Feed
- Upload your own Island Games photographs here
[/breakout]
The Bermudan cyclist, Zoenique Williams, escaped with minor injuries despite coming off her bike and crashing into the railings at high speed.
Both were taken to hospital and were discharged later in the day.
Describing the accident, one witness said: ‘It was the sprint finish, the cyclists were probably doing over 30 mph.
‘The Ynys Môn and Bermudan competitors were battling for a place, they collided and fell to the floor.
‘Someone sat the Ynys Môn cyclist up, she was very quiet and looked very dazed.
‘The other cyclist, from Bermuda, was on the floor screaming her head off.
‘Paramedics turned up and took them both to hospital.’
Another witness, Barry Cameron, said: ‘They were approaching the finish, going along at sprint speeds.
‘They were probably moving at around 40 mph.
‘I think two of them just got tangled up, there was no involvement from the spectators.
‘It looked very painful, you can imagine falling off onto the road at that speed – it is a bit like a cheese grater.’
It is not the first time that there has been an accident in the cycling event during the Games.
In 1997 several riders collided at Charing Cross during the final sprint on the approach to the finish line.
Meanwhile yesterday’s race was mired in controversy after Jersey’s Kim Ashton burst into celebration when she crossed the line first, only to be informed that Jersey had been given a penalty for not turning up to the start on time.
Ms Ashton believed that the penalty was unfair given the short length of the race and also believed that they had been given conflicting information by race officials.
An appeal was lodged and the result was expected to be announced this morning.
Other cyclists were also left aggrieved after the race commentator allegedly announced Jersey had incurred a penalty during the race, therefore affecting the other team’s strategies.
And in the men’s race, the Saaremaa team refused to attend the team medal ceremony following a dispute over a result in the individual race.
