Cycling's governing body, the UCI, has asked for detailed reports into incidents at two recent races in which riders were put at risk, either by the own behaviour or by course design.
In Sunday's Paris-Roubaix classic a number of riders circumvented the barriers at a level crossing as a train was approaching. The last few riders ignored advice to stop from a motorcycle marshal and crossed just seconds before a TGV hurtled through the crossing.
In last week's Tour of the Basque Country several riders hit a row of metal poles topped with traffic cones in the finishing straight of the opening stage.
BMC Racing’s Peter Stetina broke his right tibia and patella and four ribs in the crash, while Orica-GreenEdge’s Adam Yates broke a finger, in both cases putting their early-season goals in serious jeopardy.
In a statement, the UCI said: "Following two extremely worrying incidents that occurred over the past week during the Vuelta Ciclista al Pais Vasco and Paris-Roubaix, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) would like to reiterate that safety should at all times be the number one priority of all those involved in a cycling race.
"The UCI is taking both incidents very seriously and has requested that a comprehensive report on each of them be submitted as soon as possible for review and potential action.
"It is everyone’s duty to make sure that our beautiful sport of cycling is not tarnished by incidents that appear to have been avoidable."

5 thoughts on “UCI demands reports on Roubaix & Basque Country incidents”
Whilst not in any way
Whilst not in any way condoning the Paris – Roubaix riders crossing the railway lines as the train was approaching, the train was NOT travelling at 120 mph or anything near that speed. The ‘anti cycling’ lobby will jump on any adverse publicity, don’t let us give them anymore ammunition.
They don’t want a report on
They don’t want a report on the Flanders Shimano incidents?
No it wasn’t doing 120 – but
No it wasn’t doing 120 – but the speed of the train wasn’t the point.
It’s a daft situation that could have been avoided. If the UCI make it very, very clear that the head of the race will, without fail, be neutralised until the rest catch up then riders wouldn’t be so desperate to jump the barriers. In the past the marshals have given into rider pressure and not slowed the breakaway which is why riders take risks to be on the right side of the barrier when it closes.
It’s one thing to argue against slowing groups like a few years back when Schleck took a tumble in an early stage of the TDF and Cancellara bossed everyone into waiting: that was keeping a commercial and viable rider in the race after bad luck and bad luck is part of sport. However, jumping in front of trains shouldn’t happen and the UCI and marshals are to blame.
MercuryOne wrote:No it wasn’t
Beyond a certain speed I imagine the outcome of being hit by a train differs only in the area of spread.
Quote:but the speed of the
Except for the headline writers. B-)