Olympic champion Matt Walls has thankfully been discharged from hospital after a horror crash at the velodrome during the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham today.
While attempting to avoid a crash lower on the track, Walls and his bicycle went over the barriers and injured himself and members of the crowd.
Walls was treated for 40 minutes at the track before being taken to hospital. Two other riders were also taken to hospital, while the spectators were treated for minor injuries.
Commonwealth Games Horror Crash
Awful crash involving Matt Walls and spectators. #velodrome #crash #cycling #CommonwealthGames pic.twitter.com/Lbk2KtuMKV
— Sky Sports 🇻 (@Sky5Sports) July 31, 2022
Team England released the following statement after the crash: "Following a crash in the men’s scratch, Matt Walls & Matt Bostock are being treated by medics before being taken to hospital for further treatment. We send our best wishes to the riders and spectators involved in the incident, and will provide a further update when we can.”
Fellow velodrome cyclist and compatriot of Walls, Laura Kenny, gave her thoughts on the crash and shared her concerns over the safety of the sport.
"I messaged Jason [Kenny - her husband] and said, 'I'm not sure I want to do this. It puts everything into perspective when something like that happens.
"We all know it's a dangerous sport so when you're not feeling physically fit to put yourself at the front of it you can't help but think, 'why am I doing this?' I think the crashes are getting worse and it's because the speeds are getting higher, the positions [on the bike] are getting more extreme.
"At some point [cycling governing body] the UCI are going to have to put a cap on these positions. Maybe there should be screens because Matt should not have been able to go over the top and into the crowd, that's pretty damn dangerous. It's the third time now I've been in a velodrome and witnessed someone go over the top. [Matt] was laughing and making jokes with the paramedics, which is brilliant to hear but if he'd [not gone over] he would have done less damage."
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