Olympic cycling gold medalist Remco Evenepoel sustained fractures to his rib, right shoulder blade and right hand, contusions on both lungs and a dislocated clavicle with torn ligaments in a training accident involving a Belgian postal vehicle on Tuesday.
“The comeback starts now,” was posted on Evenepoel’s social media Wednesday. “After a scary accident on training yesterday, I underwent surgery last night and everything went well. ... It’s going to be a long journey but I’m fully focused on my recovery and I’m determined to come back stronger, step by step.”
The Belgian postal service said the accident involved one of its vehicles.
“Unfortunately, we cannot go into the details of the accident, but it goes without saying that the postwoman involved and bpost are fully cooperating with the investigation,” the postal service said. “The police arrived on site to make the necessary observations. The postwoman also remained at the scene until Remco could be taken to hospital. She is deeply affected by the incident. We wish Remco a speedy recovery and hope that the consequences for him will be kept to a minimum.”
At the Paris Games, the 24-year-old Evenepoel became the first man to win Olympic titles in the road race and the time trial.
He repeated as world champion in the time trial in September and is also a world champion in the road race from 2022.
In Grand Tours, he won the 2022 Vuelta a España and placed third in the Tour de France this past summer.
