Recovering from his crash into the back of the UAE Team Emirates-XRG team car on Alpe d’Huez, which ended his Tour de France on stage 19, Einer Rubio has called for change within the sport to prevent the repeat of similar accidents in the future.
Ascending a crowded Alpe d’Huez, Rubio found himself riding close to the back bumper of the UAE Team Emirates-XRG car, having just been passed by eventual stage winner Tadej Pogačar, when a spectator fell in front of the vehicle, forcing the driver to brake hard. Rubio crashed into the back window, breaking the glass and curtailing his Tour two days early.
Rubio came away with 20 stitches on his face. A little over a week after the incident, Rubio shared an image of himself on Instagram back home in Colombia, with the cuts and scratches from his collision with the car evident.
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The 28-year-old has suggested that his crash was avoidable, pointing to crowd control and vehicle access to the climb as contributing factors.
“A few days have passed since the accident at the Tour de France and, as the saying goes, you have to put on a brave face in difficult times,” Rubio said.
“Perhaps it would have been different with better barriers on the climb, stricter control over vehicle access and more cautious fans…No one expects to finish a race this way, but that is what happened.”
“We cannot change the past, but we can learn from these situations,” he added.
With two stages back-to-back ascending up the town of Alpe d’Huez, huge crowds flocked to the famous mountain and its 21 hairpins. Parts of the climb included barriers, holding fans back from the riders and race vehicles, but the section where Rubio’s crash occurred did not contain barriers.
“I am recovering, and I will be back soon,” Rubio concluded. He had been scheduled to race the Vuelta a España to complete the rare feat of racing all three Grand Tours in one season, but his return to racing has not yet been confirmed.
The driver of the UAE Team Emirates-XRG car and the team’s Sports Manager, Joxean Fernández Matxin, shared his perspective of the incident at the time, emphasising the number of people lining the mountain.
“In the final kilometres of the Alpe d’Huez climb, with thousands of fans right next to the road and the immense pressure typical of a decisive Tour stage, a spectator suddenly ran out and fell right beneath our vehicle,” Matxin said on Instagram. “My only reaction was to brake immediately to avoid running him over. It all happened in a split second, and my only thought was preventing a far worse tragedy.”
"I believe it is important to remember that the safety of riders, teams, and fans also depends on the responsible behaviour of those who enjoy this sport from the roadside,” he added.
Whether enough was done to ensure the safety of the riders, race officials, team staff and fans is up for debate, as are other potential measures which could be implemented in the future.
Race director Thierry Gouvenou defended A.S.O’s actions at the time, saying that the race organisation had done more than in previous years to make the event safer.
"We have already taken measures. We closed Alpe d'Huez the day before at 2 p.m. to prevent cars from driving up. Compared to previous years, a tremendous number of extra barriers have been put in place. Ropes have been stretched and posts installed. More police officers have been deployed on the climb," he told Sporza.
“It has to come mainly from the mindset of the supporters,” Gouvenou added. The solution is to make it as clear as possible to the supporters that they must have respect for the riders. Restrictive measures alone will not suffice.”
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