On Thursday the 27th of September, during the Junior Cycling World Championships, an extremely talented 18 year old girl, Muriel Furrer, passed away following a crash.
It occurred after she crashed off a steep left turn on the edge of a forest, not helped by the treacherously wet conditions. The Swiss international reportedly suffered from a severe traumatic brain injury, and was subsequently airlifted to Zurich University Hospital in a critical condition, passing away in the early hours of Friday morning. Currently, there is an ongoing criminal investigation looking into her death, with police seizing her bike for inspection and forensics undergoing tests.
Problematically, the Zurich police informed the press that there were no witnesses to the crash, and significantly, Muriel’s absence from the race was only noticed by the officials once she was considered a non-finisher. This was well over an hour after she suspectedly fell down the forest path. It is noteworthy that no security operation took place during the race, only once everyone finished.
Continually, one Swiss report was informed by the authorities that she crashed at 11.04am, and it was not until 12.55pm that an air ambulance landed next to her. Nonetheless, it is evident that drastic safety changes in cycling need to occur, as it is categorically unacceptable for a participant of a major international competition to be left by the side of the road, injured, for nearly two hours before any medical services arrived.
Muriel deserves justice. Her fatality led to negligent blame towards both the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and the raceday officials. Considering the nature of the steep turn, the drop off over the road and the treacherous conditions, it is reasonably foreseeable that a possible crash could occur at any sharp bend. The fact that for a global event, where medical infrastructure is fundamental for rider safety, there were no cameras or officials monitoring dangerous corners, it is abhorrent, but not surprising, that this magnitude of crash went negligently unnoticed.
Nevertheless, this shocking tragedy has led to more scrutiny towards the UCI, and whether they are actively doing enough to ensure safety of riders during events. The UCI already has an Extreme Weather Protocol, introduced in 2015, and a High Temperature Protocol, introduced earlier this year. However, these seem more for show rather than true enforcement; despite being named protocols they are merely guidelines for officials, and act as advice in possibly delaying or cancelling races, which they would reluctantly do anyway.
Prevention of fatalities and serious injuries should be of paramount concern for all involved, and at the very least minimising any consequences. As these protocols are not hard-enforced rules, cycling events still occur where they ought not because of poor weather. In this instance, the wet conditions were too extreme to continue.
Furthermore, There were no transponders or GPS tracking devices on the bikes in the Junior Cycling World Championships. This is mandatory for elite cyclists during the Tour de France, as of a rule introduced in 2015, so why not in all events, whether that's junior, amateur or elite cycling? Even on a casual level, Garmon devices, when secured to a bike, can track very sudden deceleration (in other words, a possible crash) and immediately would call the rider’s emergency contact. These technological safety measures, along with GPS, exist even for casual cyclists, so should exist for all athletes.
Ultimately, UCI holds responsibility for ensuring rider safety, and it is inexcusable that transponders, crash sensors or GPS are not compulsory in every cycling event, especially considering the inherently dangerous nature of the sport. Furthermore, it is inexcusable that the Extreme Weather Protocol’s are not enforced. Safety of athletes is of primary concern within every sporting context. Prioritising safety of cyclists by over-enforcing these protocols is objectively correct, despite going against the desire of athletes, event organisers and fans.
Regardless of who is to blame, it is undoubtedly necessary that increasing safety procedures need to be implemented, otherwise tragic accidents will continue to occur in future events. Muriel was 18, had a bright future ahead of her and a career in professional cycling. She was taken away through negligence, going unnoticed for nearly two hours before being found. Hopefully she gets the justice she deserves, for closure on behalf of her loved ones, and for heightened protections over other cyclists in the future to prevent this down the line. This was an unavoidable tragedy to say the least.
May she rest in peace.
