Fernando Alonso has been taken to hospital following a cycling accident in Switzerland, his team have confirmed.
The extent of any injuries the two-times world champion may have suffered are not yet known.“Alpine F1 Team can confirm that Fernando Alonso has been involved in a road accident while cycling in Switzerland,” the team confirmed in a statement on Thursday.
“Fernando is conscious and well in himself and is awaiting further medical examinations tomorrow morning.
“Alpine F1 Team will not make any further statement at this point in time. Further updates will be given tomorrow.”
Italian sporting publication La Gazzetta dello Sport reported the accident took place near Lugano and initial examinations of Alonso indicated he “has possible fractures”.
Alonso is due to make his comeback to Formula 1 this year with the Alpine team, previously known as Renault. It will be the 39-year-old’s 18th season in the sport.
Alpine is yet to confirm details of its launch plans for the new season. However the team and its rivals are due to participate in a three-day pre-season test at Bahrain International Circuit beginning on March 12th. The first race of the new season will take place at the same circuit 16 days later.
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megan00b
11th February 2021, 20:04
Multiple broken bones according to ‘de telegraaf’.
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
11th February 2021, 21:59
Broken jaw as well. Again, riding bikes on the road whilst legal it is not sensible.
stjs16 (@stjs16)
11th February 2021, 22:22
?
isthatglock21
11th February 2021, 22:35
Incidents like Nickey Hayden, Alex Zandari & even Mark Webber breaking few ribs highlight the risks involved. F1 paddock in general is historcially obsessed with cycling more than average, tho many new drivers or even Rosberg/Hamilton stopped/do very little now. Alonso/Bottas per their social media cycle almost every day in mountainous Monaco/Switzerland. Always a risk
RP (@slotopen)
11th February 2021, 22:59
Any activity that has you around cars is dangerous. Running, walking, and especially cycling. I tried lights and reflectors, it doesn’t really help.
I really like cycling but I don’t own a road bike because it isn’t fun to have cars zipping past.
But most people don’t have that understanding, especially about walking and running. It isn’t intuitive that being on a public street is roughly equivalent equivalent to riding a motorcycle.
isthatglock21
12th February 2021, 0:15
Honestly if I was an F1 team boss I’d rather my driver solo skydive like Lewis Hamilton does than constantly be on the road biking/cycling. The odds are just against you, even if its a minor injury through to something serious or even death. Pretty sure Hamiltons engineer broke a leg/ribs few years back on a Merc team cycling trip. So many examples.
Andy
12th February 2021, 2:12
Victim blaming.
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
12th February 2021, 4:36
Not victim blaming, just highlighting that riding bikes on the road is more dangerous than motorsports, even pro cyclist get hurt practising.
Tony Mansell (@tonymansell)
12th February 2021, 9:44
Try looking at the stats of pedestrian injuries and deaths from cars vs bikes. Maybe you are getting confused with motorbikers which my wifes profession call ‘donors’
MacLeod (@macleod)
12th February 2021, 8:11
Nonesense, cycling is very safe (atleast in the Netherlands) but i would not cycle in the Americas (north and South)
Also it depends on the driver itself but F1 drivers should react much faster to stay out of trouble. I cycle as i drive my motor very defensive!
Aapje (@aapje)
12th February 2021, 11:49
@macleod
It’s much safer in The Netherlands because there are a lot of separate cycle lanes.
SadF1fan
12th February 2021, 10:51
Most of these accidents happen on Italian roads, and yes I consider Italian language area Lugano aswell even doh people will argue it is Swiss.
You have to incredibly careful on those roads as a cyclist, drivers are not used to cyclists and they drive very very fast.
Tifoso1989 (@tifoso1989)
11th February 2021, 20:05
La Gazetta dello sport are reporting that he was hit by a car and according to the primary radiographic examinations he may have possible fractures. Hope he is fine though.
BasCB (@bascb)
11th February 2021, 20:07
Yeah, I think we all hope he’s fine @tifoso1989.
Tifoso1989 (@tifoso1989)
11th February 2021, 20:10
@bascb
I think cycling in public roads should be banned for top athletes because it’s extremely dangerous. We already have already a precedent with Nicky Hayden (RIP).
BasCB (@bascb)
11th February 2021, 20:33
I actually think it would be better to make sure cars don’t hit any cyclists!
LosD (@losd)
11th February 2021, 20:35
+1
GongTong (@gongtong)
11th February 2021, 20:44
Ban cars from public roads. They’re better on race tracks.
stjs16 (@stjs16)
11th February 2021, 20:43
So Pro cycling should be banned?
stjs16 (@stjs16)
11th February 2021, 20:45
Hope Alonso is is OK BTW
Tifoso1989 (@tifoso1989)
11th February 2021, 21:05
@stjs16
In pro cycling events such as Tour de France or Il Giro d’Italia, the roads are closed to motorised traffic with the exception of ambulances, local organising staff…
stjs16 (@stjs16)
11th February 2021, 21:26
@tifoso1989 The grand tours and classics are closed road but not events are, however the majority of training is on public roads.
TFLB (@tflb)
11th February 2021, 21:19
@tifoso1989 utter rubbish, it’s not up to any authority to tell people they can’t participate in their hobby just because they happen to be professional sportspeople.
Jose Torres
11th February 2021, 21:23
AFAIK many athletes have “dangerous activities” such as riding motorcycles in public road banned in their contracts, cycling in public roads should be at least considered to be dangerous
ryanoceros666
11th February 2021, 21:51
Drivers of cars should take more personal responsibility and this wouldn’t happen so often. I don’t know about Europe but in the US people drive paying little attention to their surroundings. If you hit a cyclist or pedestrian you should be banned from driving for life.
stjs16 (@stjs16)
11th February 2021, 22:14
Some countries are better than others, riding in Belgium is a joy compared the UK.
ferrox glideh (@ferrox-glideh)
11th February 2021, 22:19
I guess that inattentive pedestrians who cause an accident should be banned from walking for life, and inattentive cyclists who cause an accident should be banned from cycling for life too?
ryanoceros666
11th February 2021, 22:31
Surely you must be joking. A car is a 3000 lb death machine and should be driven on public roads with a sense of responsibility. If you are crashing into people you are not taking responsibility behind the wheel.
sensibleuser
11th February 2021, 22:52
so you assume that all accidents happen because someone is ‘irresponsible’ and I can sense the ‘won’t ever happen to me’ tone in your post. But, in reality, accidents do happen on roads and bicycles sharing roads with cars just doesn’t make sense at all. there has to be separated roads for bicycles just like pedestrians. And, I mean really ‘separated’ and not the usual lines on the side kind of paths…
Darren
12th February 2021, 2:04
Motor manufacturers also bear some responsibility, through vehicle design. In the quest for greater crash protection, modern vehicles have enormous A and C pillars. Some cars have dangerous blind spots that can “hide” pedestrians, cyclists, and even motor vehicles! This problem didn’t exist 20 or 30 years ago.
I bet anybody £1000 that motor manufacturers COULD make vehicle pillars thinner, but that would cost more money …..
Cj
11th February 2021, 21:58
I think we should just make driving tests harder and ban people who demonstrate they’re incapable of sharing roads.
ryanoceros666
11th February 2021, 22:32
Works for Finland.
Yaru (@yaru)
12th February 2021, 7:34
Or you know, ban people from cycling.
Foggy
12th February 2021, 0:26
So we ban top athletes from cycling on public roads because it’s dangerous, what about your average cyclist then, is it acceptable for them to get injured or killed on the roads.
Lets not forget that many road accidents involving cyclists are actually caused by the cyclist themselves and are not always the fault of the motorist.
Tifoso1989 (@tifoso1989)
11th February 2021, 20:07
Sorry to repeat the same sentence you have reported @keithcollantine because I was reading la Gazetta Dello Sport at the time you posted the story.
Dan (@canon1753)
11th February 2021, 20:09
Hope he heals quickly and well
Todfod (@todfod)
12th February 2021, 4:12
Agree. The only positive to come out of this news is that there aren’t serious injuries that will affect his quality of life in the long run. Bicycle accidents could go horribly wrong and I’m glad it didn’t go that way for Fernando.
Having said that, he already had a monumental challenge with his return in 2021, which only got more difficult due to this incident. I’m sure he’s got the fighting spirit to recover as soon as possible and get back in the car, but I think it will affect his pre season running and performance in the early part of the season. We all want to see him back at his best… but it is looking more difficult after today’s news.
ppzzus (@ppzzus)
11th February 2021, 20:14
Gave me flashbacks to nicky hayden. Hope all is well.
dutchtreat (@dutchtreat)
11th February 2021, 20:19
2001 Bob Wollek… for us old timers. He rode his bike back to the hotel after practice and got killed.
BasCB (@bascb)
11th February 2021, 20:37
Benson reporting that Alsonso apparently has broken his jaw and will be taken to the Bern hospital for further treatment.
faulty (@faulty)
11th February 2021, 20:40
I’d be worried if it was his collarbone, a common cycling injury. Mending that stuff requires cutting back on a lot of physical activity, and the recovery tends to be long-ish.
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
11th February 2021, 22:02
@faulty jaw is far worse, Lorenzo plated his collarbone and rode the very next day. Broken jaw may take years to fully heal.
MacLeod (@macleod)
12th February 2021, 8:20
Depends on the doctor and treatment (allso how the jaw was broken multiple parts is really bad) I heard there were more parts broken i hope for Alsonso that isn’t all his jaw.
RP (@slotopen)
12th February 2021, 2:20
Is it possible or safe to wear the helmet over a fractured jaw? Just seems like a crash could get way worse if your lower face was already injured.
Really hope he isn’t messed up too bad. It will be a really cruel twist of fate if he’s unable to drive after such a long wait.
MacLeod (@macleod)
12th February 2021, 8:22
It’s not allowed to wear a helmet with a broken jaw as any pressure on the jaw could damage it.
Ipsom
11th February 2021, 20:58
Well that’s very reassuring, very relieved that it’s not life threatening stuff!
Balue (@balue)
11th February 2021, 21:01
Oh no.. But himself to blame. No dangerous activities right before or during a season should almost be in driver’s contract by now. It’s almost unprofessional. It doesn’t matter if you own a cycling team and it’s a passion. He was squeezing every little drop of preparedness from the team and look at him now. Weeks of training lost with possible complications even affecting the driving.
kpcart
12th February 2021, 2:54
No. You cant stop a person enjoying just for the sake of their job. And cyclung isnt that dangerous. Freak accidents csn happen in any part of life, look at michael schumacher
Yaru (@yaru)
12th February 2021, 7:36
No…..but you can put it in their contract as a termination clause. Footballers have all sorts of activities they can’t partake cos it increase their risk of injury.
Balue (@balue)
12th February 2021, 16:17
Even Paul de Resta when he was active was saying how the training was so boring playing it safe in the gym.
Bicycling is statistically quite an unsafe activity. Wasn’t it Webber who broke his leg bicycling and lost a lot of preparation and I bet he was not the first F1 driver with a cycling injury.
Yaru (@yaru)
12th February 2021, 7:36
Agreed.
Jere (@jerejj)
11th February 2021, 21:13
About a month to go until pre-season testing begins and roughly a month and a half until the Bahrain GP, so he’s got time, but hopefully nothing serious. Nevertheless, unnecessary risks this close to testing and the first race. A low likelihood that he doesn’t fully recover in time, but on the off chance, who’d substitute for him? For reference, Zhou, and co., don’t have a super license. Maybe Hulkenberg (if he’d be interested in making a one-off return to team Enstone), Albon, Kvyat, whoever.
Jere (@jerejj)
11th February 2021, 21:19
I forgot about Sirotkin.
Silfen (@silfen)
11th February 2021, 23:20
Oscar Piastri does have enough points for a superlicence. And Zhou may be if he wins the Asian F3.
Duncan Idaho (@didaho)
12th February 2021, 2:31
They should be getting Hulk off his couch and into training now rather than wait to literally the last second (inexplicable short-sightness by others last year).
Even if Alonso is fine to start testing, having a reserve ready to go (and compare to) will give him the option to shorten his days and still have a fully productive program.
PaulK (@paulk)
12th February 2021, 4:04
@jerejj, not necessary a one-off though. If fracture reports are correct Alonso could miss several races.
Fu manchu
11th February 2021, 21:15
Almost every F1 driver do bike training. It was an accident, that’s all. You cannot keep drivers out of any potential risk. That’s life. I don’t get your point.
Jere (@jerejj)
11th February 2021, 21:21
@Fu manchu Some risks are more unnecessary than others. Unnecessary risks this close to testing and the first race aren’t worth taking.
Mike
11th February 2021, 22:08
Best keep all drivers covered in bubble wrap tell them not to get out of bed then 🙄🙄🙄
faulty (@faulty)
11th February 2021, 23:42
I remember JPM getting injured while playing tennis. I guess no one is truly safe.
bernasaurus (@bernasaurus)
12th February 2021, 0:21
@faulty He said he was playing tennis ;-)
Jay Menon (@jaymenon10)
12th February 2021, 0:25
Indeed. He sorta suggested that it was a motorbike accident in his Beyond the Grid interview ;)
faulty (@faulty)
12th February 2021, 1:04
No ONE is truly safe.
Yaru (@yaru)
12th February 2021, 7:38
You can’t get rid of all potential risk but you can get then off unnecessary stupid ones…..like cycling.
Fu manchu
12th February 2021, 12:27
@yaru We are not talking about BASE jumping, Parkour, or tiger petting here. OK, a Car crashed on him, bad luck. I’m sure even you have ridden a bike in your life and no one called you stupid for that :)
brum55
11th February 2021, 21:50
Damn, one of the few things to tune into in 2021 for those who want to see something a little different to the 2020 season.
Only Facts!
11th February 2021, 22:19
Alonso’s karma never ends. It’s serious, otherwise the news would be more clear.
His winter training just went down the drain if he needs to be at rest for some weeks.
One month to recover, one month to get in shape.
Hulk and Magnussen sitting by their phones at this time, chargers connected and all.
isthatglock21
11th February 2021, 22:28
Man I hope he recovers both physically & mentally to make a come back early in the season still. I’ve always been freaked out by how many motorsport folk are obsessed with cycling, almost always in mountainous areas. Having driven on some of those roads in South of France above Monaco they’re often full of risks. Especially after Nickey Haydens death, Alex Zandari’s recent terrifying crash & even Webber back in 2099 with broken ribs. Having followed Fernando on Instagram he cycles daily it seems, Just like Bottas whose GF is a cyclist the speeds on public roads is insane. Although folks like Rosberg/Hamilton gave up on cycling a while back bar few occasions, seems wise when you can keep fit in other ways that are less time consuming, let alone the risk, although you could argue risk is everywhere.
Yaru (@yaru)
12th February 2021, 7:39
Risk is everywhere but cycling on roads is a stupid extra one. Plenty of ways to stay fit without it.
NS Biker (@rekibsn)
11th February 2021, 23:41
Hope someone has got the message to N. Hulk … keep training. Ya just never know.
If it is only a broken jaw, as indicated above and elsewhere, that can be handled and he will not loose too much training. He will loose weight and the silence may be deafening.
Yes, we all hope Alonso recovers quickly. Really looking forward to him doing what Alonso does so well.
Broke1984 (@broke1984)
12th February 2021, 8:14
As someone who broke their jaw on both sides back in 2003 (on a bike funny enough) I can testify that it takes some recovering. I can’t imagine he’ll be in a f1 car soon having his head go under that many g’s if he has.
MacLeod (@macleod)
12th February 2021, 8:37
It is serious as he need to visit a specialist expect multiple breaks and those aren’t easy or fast healed…
bernasaurus (@bernasaurus)
12th February 2021, 0:19
And for years now everyone has been saying he ‘can’t catch a break’!
Without knowing the fracture(s) it’s all just speculation, I can’t imagine a mandible fracture is fun, but obviously it depends on the fracture and where it is. My right hand is littered with them (I’ve never punched anyone in my life to clarify).
I’ve never driven an F1 car to a podium, but when Romain says he did, the reality is that lots of us have a variety of fractures all over our bodies, but things like collarbone or jaw really don’t sound good.
He was always going to be one of the more interesting stories of the season, I hope he makes it.
Dean Franklin
12th February 2021, 3:43
Lucky to be alive or not have worse injuries by the sound of it.
You look at Schumacher, Hayden, Zanardi, Webber, now Alonso. Seems like the safest place for these guys is behind the wheel of an F1 car.
Alonso almost certainly misses the start of the season, might miss several races or more depending on the severity.
You have to feel sorry for Renault because Ocon has been a weak number two so far. This is going to set them back in preseason testing having Ocon and a substitute.
Hulkenberg seems like the obvious case as a replacement given he drove for Renault not long ago. But there’s also guys like Albon and Magnussen to choose from. None ideal.
They really need someone with experience. If it were Ocon they needed to replace, they could probably take a punt with someone like Guanyu Zhou.
Jere (@jerejj)
12th February 2021, 7:03
@Dean Franklin, I also recall nine-time world rally champion Sebastien Loeb having an accident when riding a mountain bike back in 2006, which forced him to sit out the remaining events and could’ve cost him the title win of that year.
Qeki (@qeki)
12th February 2021, 4:46
I can’t imagine what the driver thinks about crashing with a F1 star
Jere (@jerejj)
12th February 2021, 7:01
@qeki Hitting him must’ve been a weird feeling, but more importantly, more terrifying and shameful than if the cyclist was some random nobody.
Qeki (@qeki)
12th February 2021, 9:48
@jerejj I was worried if this would be the same case as Zanardi. Fingers crossed that if he will miss some races it will be only a handful.
Henri
12th February 2021, 6:24
Where was Hulkenurg when the accident happened? What car was he driving?
Henri
12th February 2021, 6:27
HulkenBurg!
Dean Franklin
12th February 2021, 7:14
Is Ron Dennis in Switzerland?
Todfod (@todfod)
12th February 2021, 7:23
More importantly.. where was Ocon?
Duncan Idaho (@didaho)
12th February 2021, 8:02
Ericsson comeback?
Broke1984 (@broke1984)
12th February 2021, 8:11
Good that he is conscious and “ok in himself’ hopefully no serious life changing or long term injury. Racing is secondary, most important is his health.