Jay Vine’s wife has revealed how she feared he had died as the star Australian cyclist lay prostrate in a ditch after a horror crash at the Itzulia Basque Country race.
But fellow cyclist Bre Vine predicted his fighting spirit, as he recovers in a Spanish hospital after suffering a fractured vertebra, would ensure the UAE Team Emirates rider will return to the bike “stronger than ever”.
The team reported after Thursday’s crash that the 28-year-old Canberra racer had suffered “a cervical fracture and two fractures to the vertebral body of the thoracic spine” as he perhaps fared worse than all the big-name racers in the massive crash. in the north of Spain. .
Double Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard suffered a collapsed lung, lung contusion, broken ribs and a broken collarbone, putting his title defense in doubt, while double world champion Remco Evenepoel required surgery for a fracture of clavicle and scapula.
Bre, who is pregnant, watched in horror as television footage showed Jay being treated while lying motionless on the side of the bend where he had slipped.
“I admit that when I saw the live coverage of him lying there not moving for so long, I really wasn’t sure if she still had a husband and if the worst was over,” she posted on Instagram.
“As soon as the team had communication, they told me as soon as possible. And I’m really grateful for how quickly they gave me the news.”
He said he got into his car at his home in Andorra and arrived at the hospital’s ICU six hours later.
“I will let UAE share his medical updates when we have determined the extent of the injuries. But for now he is ‘doing well’ and we are still considering all of our options. The team is making sure he and I receive the best care possible,” he added.
“There is a lot to unpack from the incident and we will have conversations with the relevant people later, but for now my focus is on our family and helping Jay get through this.
“I’ve followed every mile Jay has run and trained, I’ve seen every accident and every triumph.
“This accident will stay with us for a long time, but like Jay has done every day before, he will fight and come back stronger than ever with the #getwreckedjay spirit we love.
“It’s a strange phrase, I’ll give you that, but it goes back to all those years ago when we were racing mountain bikes, and to sum it up: it means give it everything you’ve got, things will happen and things will go wrong, but keep fighting.
“And that is what this man continues to do every day and we will do it again together.”
Vine’s rise has been one of the most inspiring in cycling, after he was discovered as an esports specialist, before being recruited by a professional cycling team and becoming a Grand Tour stage winner and Tour Down Under champion.
But days after starting the Basque tour with a brilliant second place in the time trial, this latest in a catalog of injuries he has suffered will keep him out of the Giro d’Italia, where he would have been one of Tadej Pogacar’s key lieutenants in the mountains.
Double Tour de France champion Pogacar extended his best wishes to his teammate, whose Olympic hopes for 2024 are also surely over.
AAP
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