Shocking moment CAR collides with Team GB star during Olympics 2024 cycling road race
SILVER medal winner Anna Henderson was hit by a service car during the women's road race at the Paris Olympics on Sunday.
It was some time before the highest placed Team GB cyclist - Pfeiffer Georgi - finished fifth and Henderson placed 13th as America claimed a shock gold.
Georgi finished a minute behind Olympic champion Kristen Faulkner - but the race was not without it's controversy.
A neutral service car was following an entourage of relief motorbikes and one other support car that stayed wide and left after a road bend.
But as the row of vehicles turned right at a corner, a Polish athlete immediately dismounted her bike in need of assistance.
And in shocking scenes, the blue Shimano service car sharply turned inward after the bend to provide mechanical assistance.
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But in so doing, the bike racked support vehicle accidentally cut across 25-year-old Henderson, stopping her in her tracks.
A back seat mechanic tried to exit the car to assess the situation, but the British cyclist quickly got back underway.
Fortunately, both riders were able to continue, with Henderson clocking a a time of 4:02:57seconds.
Each team has two cars following the peloton that are able to assist the riders throughout the race with a mechanic in the back seat and spare bikes on the roof.
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The blue neutral service cars are also present at all three Grand Tours, the Tour de France Femmes, the World Championships, and many other races on the UCI men's and women's calendars.
Henderson won a surprise silver in the women's time trial last weekend, as Australian Grace Brown claimed gold and Team USA's Chloe Dygert secured bronze.
And the Hemel Hempstead rider didn't have it all her way on that day either - as multiple riders suffered some nasty falls in the Parisian rain.
Meanwhile, Henderson's accolade in her debut Games comes 10 years after she decided to take up cycling following a leg break while skiing at 15 years old, an injury which forced her to give up the sport.
