On a gruelling course, it is little surprise that the Tour de France is the home to some of the worst crashes in cycling, with numerous participants ruled out after suffering collisions in the 21-day race.
Here’s our run down of the main incidents since the turn of the century, with help from our friends at Leisure Lakes Bikes.
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The Tour was suspended temporarily after a significant crash in Stage 3 of the race, between Antwerp and Huy, at the bottom of the Côte de Bohissau. The high-speed chain-reaction crash, which happened on the flat part of the road, caused 10-15 riders to fall – including yellow jersey holder Fabian Cancellara and Orica-GreenEdge captain Simon Gerrans.
It led to four cyclists having to abandon their participation in the race, including Cancellara, who had two broken lumbar vertebrae, and was unable to start Stage 4. The race was halted by officials due to medical personnel treating the injured and being unable to follow the race.
Three days later, in Stage 6, another crash took place on the journey into Le Havre. Time trial World Champion Tony Martin fell with just 1km to go, after touching wheels with a Europcar racer. Martin remounted his bike and finished the stage, but had to drop out after the crash, having broken his collar bone in multiple places and having to undergo surgery in Hamburg.
2014 – CAV-A-GO HERO
Omega Pharma’s Mark Cavendish collided with Simon Gerrans of Orica-GreenEdge at the end of Stage 1 in Harrogate. The pair, alongside a Cofidis rider, fell in the last 250 metres of the stage. Cavendish himself took responsibility for the accident, stating: “In reality, I tried to find a gap that wasn’t really there.” Gerrans had scrapes on his back and his hips but Cavendish, who dislocated his shoulder and damaged ligaments, was forced to undergo surgery and drop out of the Tour.
More crashes followed that year, with a total of three falls by defending champion Chris Froome in Stage 4 and 5. Froome, who rode for Team Sky, was one of the Tour’s favourites, but had to pull out from the race due to fractures to his left wrist and right hand.
In Stage 10, Alberto Contador, a rider for the Tinkoff-Saxo team, crashed and, though he received medical attention and attempted to ride a further 20km, exited the competition with a fractured tibia.
2013 – JACK BAUER FINALLY COMES UNSTUCK
Jean-Christophe Péraud crashed at the Stage 17 time trial, which covered the Côte de Puy-Sanières and the Côte de Réallon. Péraud had already suffered a fractured collar bone when he had crashed earlier that day, but the second collision forced him to leave the competition.
The same year, Jack Bauer, riding for Team Garmin-Sharp, was involved in a significant accident at Stage 19 of the Tour. The crash took place on the descent of the Col de la Madeleine, where Bauer came off-road and fell into barbed wire fencing. He was unable to continue the race.
2012 – CENTURIAN CRASH
In Stage 6 a large crash took place involving nearly 100 participants. White jersey candidate Wout Poels, riding for Vacansoleil-DCM, ended up in an ambulance before getting back out and trying to re-join. He had suffered from three broken bones, bruised lungs, and a ruptured spleen and kidney, and travelled 10K before being forced to drop out of the race.
2011 – DUM MOVE BY SAMUEL
Samuel Dumoulin’s crash in the final sprint of Stage 3 was arguably the most headline-grabbing of 2011 The Cofidis cyclist crashed into the barriers on the final corner, completed a somersault and nearly ended up back and upright on his bike. The process interfered with the sprint of Mark Cavendish.
In Stage 9, Johnny Hoogerland crashed spectacularly. Juan Antonio Flecha from Team Sky was knocked off his bicycle by a passing France 2 television car, which caused him to knock Hoogerland off his bike in turn. The latter was thrown into a barbed wire fence, cutting his legs and shorts. After a promising start, Hoogerland was able to finish the stage, but at 139th. Hoogerland and Flecha both received compensation from France 2’s parent company Euro Media.
2010 – ARMSTRONG’S TRIPLE THREAT
In 2010, Lance Armstrong crashed three times in one day, ending his 13th attempt at the Tour de France. The Team RadioShack cyclist struggled up the climbs, and avoided his first spill four miles in. Then, before the La Ramaz pass, he fell while cycling in a group around the roundabout, having clipped his pedal. Armstrong got back on his bike and began to cycle again. A third time, 12 miles before the end of the race, a rider fell in front of him and he had to jump off his bike again. Armstrong completed the race 12 minutes behind the winner, Andy Schleck from Team CSC.
2009 – TRAGEDY STRIKES
During Stage 14, a female spectator was killed and two others were injured, in the village of Wittelsheim, Colmar. At around 40km into the race, the woman, in her 60s, was hit by a police motorbike when crossing the road after a breakaway group of riders.
Two stages later, on Stage 16, Saxo Bank rider Jens Voigt ended his participation in the Tour on the descent from the col du Petit Saint Bernard towards the finish line. Voigt hit a bump in the road and appeared to lose his grip on the handlebars before his fall. He was travelling at an estimated 80kph. He had a concussion, and had fractured his right cheekbone.
2008 – CUNEGO CULLED
During Stage 18 of the 2008 Tour de France, Lampre rider Damiano Cunego was forced to pull out of the Tour after his crash. He was 35km into the stage when he crashed into a wall, after his bike was stuck in a gulley. Cunego’s chest crashed into the wall, and he tore his jersey and split his chin. His team-mates assisted him in completing the race, but Cunego was unable to begin Stage 19 of the Tour.
2007 – ROGER THAT
The Tour de France in 2007 saw the crash of Mick Roger on Stage 8, with 54km still to go. Roger, who rides for T-Mobile GC, fell on the descent of the Cormet de Roselend, into Bourg-St-Maurice. A tight left-hand turn caused Roger to fall, although he quickly got back up to race against the six riders up ahead. Roger had to abandon the race with 35 kilometres left in the stage though, due to a dislocated shoulder. An equipment problem was blamed for the fall.
2006 – BOBBY BAILS
The 2006 Tour saw the fall of Jose Gomez Marchante, of the Saunier Duval–Prodir team, while Bobby Julich, of team CSC, also fell at this Tour, on Stage 7. During the time trial, he lost control of his bike, before falling into a curb, causing his right wrist to break. Julich was forced to withdraw from the race for that year.
2005 – I PREDICTOR A RIOT
The 21st Stage set the scene for a memorable Tour de France crash. The collision, between Wim Vansevenant (Predictor-Lotto) Carlos Da Cruz (Française des Jeux) and Salvatore Commesso (Lampre), scattered bikes around the scene.
2004 – CASPER THE NOT-SO FRIENDLY CYCLIST
At just 200 metres from the finishing line, Kurt-Asle Arvesen (CSC) and Jimmy Casper (Cofidis) crashed in the sprint Stage 2 of the Tour de France. The stage, between Charleroi and Namus, was won by Robbie McEwen from team Lotto Domo.
2003 – JAN SHOWS SPORTSMANSHIP
Lance Armstrong suffered a few crashes, at one stage falling because of a handlebars issue. Jan Ullrich, from Team Bianchi, was the leader at this point, but followed the informal rules of the Tour de France sportsmanship and didn’t attempt to gain a lead on Armstrong when he was down. The eventual outcome was that Armstrong won the stage, and the Tour that year.
2002 – AND THE OSCAR GOES TO…
Stage 7 of the 2002 Tour saw a number of crashes in the last remaining kilometres of the stage. Some of the cyclists involved included Emmanuel Magnien (Europcar), Oscar Freire (Mapei–Quick-Step) and Luciano Pagliarini (Lampre).
2001 – STRONG ARM
In the 2001 tour, Jan Ullrich fell during the descent down the Col de Peyresourde. This took place during Stage 13, when the Team Telekom cyclist mistook a corner and headed down the barrier. In a move that would be reciprocated by Ullrich two years later, Armstrong waited for Ullrich to get back on his bike before continuing the race.
2000 – HERAS TO VILLAIN
Roberto Heras, cycling for Kelme, rode into the barriers in Stage 16, taking a fall, while in the same stage Frederic Guesdon of the La Francaise des Jeux collided with a deer. Guesdon was unharmed.
