Britain’s Kai White suffered a heavy crash in the semi-final and was treated by several paramedics before being carried off the BMX track on a stretcher. Friday night at the Paris Olympics.
White, a reigning Olympic silver medallist, fell after descending a steep starting ramp near the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines National Velodrome and entering the 410-metre course.
He was traveling at approximately 35 miles per hour on the track at the time and landed hard on his side before coming to rest on the ground.
Medical staff were treating France’s Sylvain Andre even before he crossed the finish line first.
Such high-speed crashes are common in BMX races, where riders are in tight spaces on courses with bumps, inclines and sharp turns.
The previous day, Carlos Alberto Ramirez crashed in the last-chance qualifying race and was taken away on a stretcher, but he was on the track on Friday night to watch the semi-finals and finals.
