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25th Jul 2018

Phillipe Gilbert shares image showing extent of his Tour de France crash injury

Simon Lloyd

Not for the squeamish, perhaps

In his own words, Philippe Gilbert “had a lucky escape” following his crash at the Tour de France on Tuesday.

The 35-year-old Quick Step Floors rider lost control of his bike during a descent of the Col de Portet d’Aspet during Stage 16. He then collided with a road-side wall, the impact throwing him head-first into a ravine.

While some viewers feared the worst, the Belgian reemerged, offered a thumbs-up to a cameraman, and continued on his way, completing the final 60km of the stage.

Unfortunately for him, however, it later emerged that he’d not be able to continue. A check-up in hospital revealed he’d actually broken his kneecap in the crash and would not be able to play any further part in this year’s Tour.

Having vowed to come back stronger from the setback, he later posted an image which made clear the extent of his injury. Tweeting a picture of both of his legs, the severe swelling around his left knee was obvious – making us all wonder how exactly he managed to continue for another 60km.

Although not nice to look at, it’s quite obvious that things could have been much, much worse for Gilbert.