Coryn Labecki (Jumbo-Visma) will not participate in the 2022 UCI Road World Championships after crashing out of the Simac Ladies Tour. The US rider was named to the selection for Team USA and was set to compete in her eight World Championships, but her plans were brought undone by a broken collarbone and fractured rib.
“I was so looking forward to being back racing with the girls and use the race as final prep towards worlds,” Labecki said in an Instagram post. “I have decided to pass on the World Championships in Australia and focus on my recovery.
"This season has not been kind to me. Although I will say that my spring was healthy and decent and I am grateful for that. This summer has been a true test, but trust me when I say that I will be back! I will come out of this tougher than before plus a plate and 6 screws heavier as well.”
It has been a difficult season for Labecki with illness ruling her out of the Tour de France Femmes and several weeks of racing.
USA Cycling told Cyclingnews that Labecki’s replacement for the World Championships later this month will be announced next week along with the sixth member of the elite men’s team.
"Coryn has been a leader in American bike racing and the professional peloton for years. It has been a tough season for Coryn. Ending it with a broken collarbone and missing out on her eighth World Championships is extremely unfortunate," a representative of USA Cycling told Cyclingnews.
"We fully support her decision to focus on her recovery. With her strength and dedication, we know Coryn will be back stronger in 2023. In her absence, we will bring an additional rider to round out the team and support Team USA’s success in Wollongong."
Majerus undergoes surgery for dislocated collarbone
The opening three stages of the Simac Ladies Tour have proved to be unusually attritional with 12 riders abandoning after a series of crashes.
Labecki was one of seven riders forced to abandon the Simac Ladies Tour on stage 1 alone as several crashes ripped apart the peloton.
Only 21 riders escaped the chaos of the biggest crash 80 kilometres from the finish, while 2019 overall winner Christine Majerus (Team SD Worx), Femke Markus (Parkhotel Valkenburg), Shari Bossuyt (Canyon-SRAM) and Léa Stern (Roland Cogeas Edelweiss Squad) all suffered race-ending injuries.
Examinations later revealed that Majerus had sustained a dislocated collarbone, which her team said would require surgery to correct. Bossuyt, meanwhile, was taken to hospital with concussion and Markus required dental work for a broken tooth.
Although the peloton seemed to relax the next day, after a crash-strewn opening stage, incidents still happened including one which felled Susanne Andersen (Uno-X) and Emilia Fahlin (FDJ Suez Futuroscope).
It marked a second broken collarbone this season for the Norwegian, after she was forced to miss the inaugural Tour de France Femmes following a crash at the National Championships. Andersen confirmed to Norwegian magazine Sykkelmagasinet that she had broken the same side of her collarbone but in a different place and the injury meant she would take herself out of the running for selection for World Championships.
Fahlin finished the stage but withdrew overnight with a suspected broken wrist, though this has not yet been confirmed by her team.
