Paulissen was on second position when he punctured his tire and while he was fixing it, some others competitors overtook. Once back on the bike, in order to chase them down Roel Paulissen hastened to make up ground. He went too fast over a metal bridge so that his front wheel slipped away. He crashed and got stuck with his little finger from this left hand in a hole of one of the metal plates the bridge was made of. With the speed Paulissen had, the finger was pinched and tail and tip came cut off.
Paulissen was immediately brought to the closest hospital where he had to have several stitches. With an infection to come, so the doctor explained to Roel, it could happen that the finger needs to be amputated.
Roel Paulissen:”Let’s hope nothing worse is going to happen! When I saw my finger right after the crash, and cyclists are used to bad crashes and injuries, I almost had to vomit and felt ill! Now it hurts like hell, but what hurts most is that next Sunday there is the first of three World Cups in a row in Madrid taking place. I am – or was before that crash - in a really good shape and the course in Madrid fits me well; I was really focused on these upcoming races, but now let’s hope for the best that I will be able to start at all!”
Belgian mountainbike athlete Roel Paulissen, riding for Giant Racing Team, injured his hand seriously in today’s E1 Bundesliga race in Heubach (Germany).
