Lucinda Brand (Baloise Trek Lions) suffered facial injuries sustained in a crash that forced her to abandon the race while leading the World Cup in Zonhoven on Sunday.
"In the women’s race, Lucinda Brand was on track to get the victory, when she unfortunately fell and had to step out of the race. She will get a necessary check-in with the medical staff to determine the next steps," Baloise Trek Lions wrote in an official update following the race.
Brand was leading the race when she skidded heavily on a left-hand bend at speed on the third lap. Live broadcast footage of the race showed Brand sliding out and hitting her face on the hard-packed ground, with her nose taking much of the impact.
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She stood up, holding her bleeding nose, and walked along the course until support arrived. Brand's Baloise Trek Lions' support team wrapped Brand in a warm jacket and clothing as she continued to hold her nose.
Baloise Trek Lions have not released a medical update; however, Brand posted to Instagram later in the afternoon, writing, “Wow, that hurts. What a match until I hit the ground."
"Did hit my nose very hard, next up: making an x-ray to decide the next steps in the process. Thanks for all your kind messages. I promise I will keep fighting!"
Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) went on to win the World Cup in Zonhoven and wished Brand a quick recovery.
"I suddenly saw her standing still. At first, I thought she was unlucky, but a little later, I saw that she was no longer there," said Pieterse, who was coming back from a first-lap mechanical when she rode passed an injured Brand on the third lap. “Her crash was lucky for me, but I hope everything goes well for her.”
Zoe Backstedt, who finished third on the day, referred to Brand's accident and how it had affected the overall outcome of the World Cup.
When asked if she could have done better than third, she replied, "I don't think so. When Lucinda was still in the race, she was flying; she just floats over the sand, so it's really cool to see, and Puck came back super-fast.
"I was in a little bit of a hurt box today, so I was happy to get third, I also would have been happy to get fourth, but unfortunately, Lucinda crashed, and I wish her a speedy recovery."
