Australian Cyclist Undergoes Abdominal Surgery After Fall During Olympic Time Trial

Australian cyclist Lucas Plapp underwent abdominal surgery overnight at a hospital in Paris after a severe crash on rain-soaked roads during the Olympic time trial on Saturday, as confirmed by the Australian team. The governing body of Australian cycling, AusCycling, announced the surgical procedure early Sunday, without providing further details.

Plapp was one of the last riders to commence the 32.4-kilometer (20-mile) route and was making a remarkable performance, only trailing the then-leader and eventual bronze medalist Wout van Aert by a mere two seconds at the first time check. Unfortunately, when Plapp encountered a technical section of the course, his bicycle skidded out and he endured a highly impactful crash onto the pavement.

The incident was not captured during the race’s broadcast; however, AusCycling assured that Plapp remained conscious and was responsive following the accident. Subsequently, he was transported to the hospital in the team vehicle for precautionary scans, and ultimately required abdominal surgery.

AusCycling reported that Plapp slipped beneath a barrier fence shortly after passing the initial checkpoint, roughly 14 kilometers into the 32-kilometer route. His parents and an Australian team doctor accompanied him at the hospital throughout the ordeal.

The 23-year-old Plapp, who secured a bronze medal at the Tokyo Games as a part of the Australian pursuit team, currently holds the national titles in both time trial and road race championships. He was originally scheduled to compete alongside Simon Clarke, providing support to teammate Michael Matthews in the Olympic road race set to occur next Saturday.

Remco Evenepoel claimed victory in the time trial, resulting in Belgium having two riders on the podium. Filippo Ganna of Italy finished in the second position. However, both the men’s and women’s races were marred by multiple crashes due to the treacherous rain-soaked course.

Among those unfortunate to experience a fall was American cyclist Chloe Dygert, the reigning time trial world champion. Nonetheless, she managed to remount her bicycle and rallied to secure the third position, trailing behind gold medalist Grace Brown from Australia and Anna Henderson from Britain.

Chloe Dygert commented on the challenging conditions, stating, “If we were in Britain, these (conditions) would be absolutely perfect. The roads are better to take corners on. When we’re in Spain, France, or Italy, I feel like it’s a little more icy.” Despite the adverse weather, Dygert intends to participate in both the road race and team pursuit events during the Olympics, acknowledging the significant impact the conditions have on the race dynamics.