Cyclist undergoes surgery to reattach arm after gruesome criterium crash when limb caught barrier

A California-based racer is "in good spirits" despite reportedly having undergone surgery to reattach his arm after a crash during a criterium race on Saturday.

The incident on the last lap of the Salt Lake Criterium in Provo on Saturday evening saw Ryan Jastrab's right arm connect with a metal barrier at the side of the road, KSL reporting that spectators compared the gruesome incident to like something out of a war film and recalled the scramble to treat the injured rider after the impact nearly severed his limb near the shoulder.

Jastrab's arm got caught in a roadside barrier before he flipped over the handlebars, spectators suggesting there was only a bit of skin holding his arm to his shoulder. A man's belt was used as a makeshift tourniquet before paramedics rushed him to a nearby hospital.

> Video: Drone causes spectacular crash at criterium in California

Paramedics told the Utah news site he was "extremely lucky" medics arrived on the scene so quickly and said it was "a miracle" that the surgery had prevented the loss of his arm. One of Jastrab's Team Six Cycling teammates reported he is in "good spirits" and has some feeling and movement back in his hand.

One spectator explained the shocking scene: "(His arm) was literally removed from his body. It sounds quite extreme, but it's really what happened."

"It was like out of a movie," another said. "When somebody dies in a war movie or something — that's what it looked like. I thought he was going to die for sure. It was literally right in front of the finish line. The finish line was right there, so they were all just scrambling and pushing as hard as they could."

 

 

 

 

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Somewhat disputing some of the comments about the severity of the injury, the event's executive director said his understanding was that it was Jastrab's bicep muscle that needed to be reattached.

"It's a common occurrence in this type of racing just because it's so fast on such a small course," Eric Gardiner commented about crashes during criterium races. "They've happened to me before, too — obviously not to this serious extent — but it's a sad side of their sport, and I'm glad he's going to recover."

The manager of Jastrab's team has however questioned the design of barriers used at the race and said "it's just not safe".

"It makes no sense," he said. "If you stick a body part through there, something's going to happen when you're going like 40 miles an hour. It's just not safe. There have been quite a few injuries this year in the cycling world regarding barriers, and I've also seen some crashes this year where barriers are closed or covered and people come out with way less injuries."

USA Cycling has not commented on the incident.