GENEVA -- Swiss cyclist Gino Mäder was airlifted to the hospital after being found unconscious after he crashed down a ravine at his home Tour de Suisse.
The 26-year-old Mäder and another rider, Magnus Sheffield of the United States, went off the road near the same spot on a fast descent approaching the end of the mountainous fifth stage into La Punt.
“Gino Mäder lay motionless in the water,” race organizers said in a statement. “He was immediately resuscitated and transported to Chur hospital by air ambulance.”
Organizers said they clarifying how the accident happened.
Mäder’s team, Bahrain-Victorious, said he was “unresponsive, resuscitated at the scene and then transported by helicopter. Our thoughts and prayers are with Gino.”
The stage route was criticized by world champion Remco Evenepoel, who finished 10th and is fourth overall in the eight-day race.
“While a summit finish would have been perfectly possible, it wasn’t a good decision to let us finish down this dangerous descent,” Evenepoel wrote on his Twitter account. “As riders, we should also think about the risks we take going down a mountain.”
Sheffield sustained a concussion and bruises and was treated at a local hospital, organizers said.
Mäder placed fifth in the Spanish Vuelta in 2021 and also was fifth in the Paris-Nice stage race in March.