The triumphant cyclist of the Giro d’Italia and the Tour de France is now in intensive care The San Colombano fan club is eagerly awaiting news on his health
SAN COLOMBANO BELMONTE
The news of the very serious accident involving Egan Bernal, winner of the 2021 Giro d’Italia, reached Canavese in an instant, the Colombian champion’s adopted land.
In the Buasca hamlet, where he lived in his first years of professionalism (when he raced for the Androni Giocattoli-Sidermec), as well as in the other Alto Canavese centers where the champion is considered “at home”, anger, consternation and hope alternate. Here is the headquarters of the Egan Bernal Fan Club, a group of loyalists who flock to applaud the Colombian every time he runs around here: when he won his first victory in Italy (the Gran Piemonte 2019, at the finish line in Oropa), it was a real apotheosis, with the cup in the hands of Wladimir Chiuminatto, president of the club. And last May all the members moved to Piazza del Duomo, in Milan, strictly dressed in pink, to celebrate Bernal’s success in the Giro d’Italia.
Now those days seem very distant, the desire to toast and scream at the top of one’s voice has given way to an almost spasmodic attention towards the computer, the only source, for now, of news on the unfortunate cyclist’s state of health. The accident occurred on Monday, when it was already evening in Italy, on the Colombian roads where Bernal was training with some teammates, including Richard Carapaz, winner of the 2019 Giro d’Italia.
According to an initial reconstruction, Bernal could not avoid a bus that suddenly stopped in front of him. The marks on the rear bumper of the vehicle leave no doubt about the violence of the impact. The situation, for the rescuers, immediately appeared critical and the first tests at the university clinic of La Sanbana confirmed an impressive series of traumas.
Within a few hours Bernal underwent two surgeries: the first was performed by a multidisciplinary team of general surgery, orthopedics and traumatology, who underwent an internal fixation to reduce fractures in the femur and patella. The team also intervened on the perforation of a lung. The second operation, of neurosurgery, dealt with the vertebral lesions with a stabilization intervention to maintain neurological integrity intact and preserve the functionality of the involved segments. There would be no risks for Bernal’s life, but the athlete will have to remain at least 72 hours under observation in intensive care: afterwards it will be possible to understand the outcome of the interventions, the general conditions and evaluate the recovery times.
At best, Bernal will be able to return to training in 7-8 months, which means that the 2022 season, the one in which to attempt an encore at the Tour de France, is already over. The messages of good wishes rain towards Colombia and that of his Canavese fans could not be missing: «Come on Egan – the club management urges him – it is a tough race, but you can and must win it. We are waiting for you and we are close to you, with the same affection and the same warmth of the moments in which we celebrated your victories ». An affection that does not hide the worries: «Now only one thing counts: to fully recover the man Egan. Then we will worry about the sporting aspect ». –
Federico Bona