Wellwishers crowdfunding new bike for rider seriously injured in alleged hit and run

Friends and colleagues of a cyclist seriously injured in an alleged hit and run collision in Bournemouth last week have launched a JustGiving page to try and raise funds for a new bike.

Jacek Szafranski was riding from his home in Bournemouth to the UK Mail office in Poole on Thursday October 27 at 4.45am when he was hit by a Vauxhall Tigra which had reportedly jumped a red light and was said to have been travelling at around 60mph.

Szafranski suffered a broken leg, multiple breaks in his foot, cuts to his head and severe damage to the skin on his leg. His bike was smashed to bits.

A top level volleyball player with Solent Volleyball Club, Szafranski cycled to work daily and according to the fundraising page had invested a lot of money in a bike he could rely on. The aim is to replace it and also help him with additional costs resulting from the incident.

Over £1,800 has already been raised of a £2,000 target with 27 days still to go.

Solent Volleyball Club chairman and men’s coach, Adam Phillips, told the Bournemouth Echo:

“Jacek is one of the nicest people you could ever hope to meet. He is one of our best players and I think we may struggle in the league without him. He is definitely one of the top players in the country.

“We went to see him over the weekend and he is in good spirits. He said he was beginning to feel like himself again.”

A 19-year-old Bournemouth man arrested in relation to the collision has now been charged with offences including: causing serious injury by dangerous driving, failing to stop, failing to report a collision, failing to stop for police, fuel bilking and document offences.

It is alleged the Tigra had earlier failed to stop for police officers and a police pursuit was halted around two hours and 20 minutes before the collision with Szafranski.

As a marked police vehicle was in Poole Road at the time of collision, the matter has been referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).