Fabio Jakobsen to be woken from induced coma after Tour of Poland crash

Doctors will attempt to wake Fabio Jakobsen from his medically-induced coma on Thursday after the Dutch cyclist underwent surgery overnight.

Jakobsen is in a stable condition in hospital after a major crash on stage one of the Tour of Poland on Wednesday. The 23-year-old’s team Deceuninck-Quick-Step confirmed he had not suffered brain or spinal injuries after he collided at high speed with compatriot Dylan Groenewegen metres from the line of the final downhill sprint and crashed over the barriers into an official. Jakobsen was airlifted to hospital and placed in a coma and after undergoing facial surgery it is hoped he can regain consciousness.

“Fabio had facial surgery during the night. His situation is stable at the moment and later today the doctors will try to wake Fabio up,” said a statement by Deceuninck-Quick-Step.

Meanwhile, Movistar have confirmed that Edu Prades will not compete in Thursday’s second stage of the event after he was one of the riders involved in the incident in Katowice. Prades spent the night in hospital after suffering a wound to his back which required stitches and the 32-year-old is set to fly to Pamplona to undergo further check-ups following a small transverse fracture to cervical vertebra C6.

The incident was caused by Jumbo-Visma sprinter Groenewegen drifting into Jakobsen’s path and, after he had been disqualified, the 27-year-old’s action was condemned by cycling’s governing body.

A UCI statement read: “The Union Cycliste Internationale strongly condemns the dangerous behaviour of rider Dylan Groenewegen, who sent Fabio Jakobsen into the barriers a few metres from the finish, causing a collective crash at the end of the first stage of the Tour of Poland.

“The UCI, which considers the behaviour unacceptable, immediately referred the matter to the disciplinary commission to request the imposition of sanctions commensurate with the seriousness of the facts.”

• The picture caption on this article was amended on 6 August 2020 after an agency photo wrongly included Fabio Jakobsen as one of the riders in the centre of the photo. This has been corrected.