An up-and-coming Belgian cyclist has been killed after he was involved in a collision with a van when he and other riders were sent the wrong way during a race.
Stef Loos, aged 19, died in hospital in Tournai from head and other injuries sustained during the collision on Sunday, his Acrog-Pauwels Sauzen team announced yesterday, reports Dhnet.be.
He was one of 30 or so riders who, according to team manager Jef Robert, were sent the wrong way by a marshal while taking part in the Grand Prix Alfred Gadenne.
He said that three riders, including Loos, “were driven into from the side by a van” at an “unsecured crossroads.”
Neither of the other two riders is in a life-threatening condition, although one sustained a broken leg.
Robert added: “We’re devastated by what has happened. Stef had ridden with us for a few years and was very well liked.
“Moreover, it’s not the first serious incident involving one of our riders. We are all in mourning.”
Police are investigating the incident, which has also been referred to the public prosecutors office in Tournai.
Belgian Cycling, meanwhile, expressed its condolences on Twitter.
The cycling community in Belgium suffered a devastating loss with the passing of Stef Loos. The thoughts of everyone at Belgian Cycling are with his family, friends and team-mates at this sad time. pic.twitter.com/1E6GO0SX20
— Belgian Cycling (@BELCycling) March 18, 2019

3 thoughts on “Belgian cyclist killed as riders “sent wrong way” during race”
Awful
Awful
So: a crossroads in Belgium. What are their rules of the road? Did the van driver not look, or would the cyclists have been expected to give way?
brooksby wrote:
I assume that they believed that they were on a closed road and thus normal rules did not apply. Tragic for all involved 🙁
Belgium seems to be the same
Belgium seems to be the same as the Netherlands – “voorrang van rechts”, i.e., traffic coming from your right has priority (if there are no other priority signs):
https://rijbewijs-online.be/nl/belgie/verkeersregels/voorrangsregels
If they were coming from the van’s left, from an equal priority road, the driver might not even have looked in their direction (the driver’d have been looking right).