Tour de France 2023: Stage 15 Marred by Crash Induced by Selfie-Taking Fan

The 2019 Tour de France victor, Egan Bernal, was among the cyclists affected in the accident.

Around 20 participants were involved in a mishap on the Tour de France’s fifteenth stage, instigated by a spectator attempting to capture a selfie. The day’s race was claimed by Wout Poels from the Netherlands, while defending champion Jonas Vingegaard managed to retain his lead of 10 seconds over Tadej Pogacar.

An onlooker with a phone in their hand accidentally struck the handlebars of Sepp Kuss, a teammate of Vingegaard from Team Jumbo-Visma. Kuss fell alongside his teammate Nathan van Hooydonck, triggering a significant tumble in the peloton.

Recalling the event, Kuss stated, “We had a squeeze in the town, and a fan was on the road, who seems to have clipped my handlebars. Thankfully, I am unharmed, and I hope others involved in the crash are as well. It’s not ideal.”

All involved riders managed to finish the 179km stage, which commenced at Les Gets les Portes du Soleil and ended at Saint-Gervais Mont-Blanc. The stage’s victor, Poels, was in the breakaway ahead by several minutes, and Vingegaard remained unaffected by the incident.

The official Twitter account of the Tour posted a slow-motion video after the mishap, showing a cyclist dodging a fan’s outstretched arm, captioned “Please pay attention to the riders.” Other teams echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the importance of safety and respect for the cyclists.

In 2021, one of the Tour’s most severe accidents occurred when a female spectator holding a placard for her grandparents inadvertently clipped rider Tony Martin on the first stage. This caused two cyclists to withdraw and eight others to be treated for injuries. The woman later faced legal consequences and was fined a symbolic one euro.

Following this incident, the cycling world has been vigilant about spectators getting too close to the action. Measures have been introduced to better manage crowds and assess high-speed descents, highlighting the unique challenges of road cycling.

Wout Poels of Team Bahrain Victorious secured his first Grand Tour stage win, finishing ahead of Wout van Aert and Mathieu Burgaudeau. Despite an attack in the final kilometer of the 7km climb to the finish, Slovenian Pogacar, representing UAE Team Emirates, couldn’t establish a lead over Vingegaard.

The 21-stage race is set to resume with a 22.4km time trial from Passy to Combloux on Tuesday, following Monday’s rest day.

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More about Tour de France 2023 crash

• Tour de France
• Egan Bernal
• Wout Poels
• Jonas Vingegaard
• Sepp Kuss
• 2021 Tour de France incident
• Team Bahrain Victorious
• UCI’s Safety Measures