Famed Great Britain sprint cyclist Mark Cavendish caused an ugly crash Monday when he veered in front of South Korea’s Sanghoon Park during the last round of the men’s omnium. The crash took out multiple riders, including eventual gold medal winner Elia Viviani. Somehow, Cavendish escaped without a scratch.
Mark Cavendish causes huge crash in the men’s cycling omnium in Rio
Mark Cavendish took responsibility for the crash that took out a South Korean rider and the eventual omnium gold medal winner. But no, he probably did not do it on purpose.
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Crashes are part and parcel of cycling, but this one caused some debate. Many believed that Cavendish caused the crash on purpose. In the video, he turns his head to look in the direction of Park before veering to the inside of the track. Here's former Danish cyclist and four-time Tour de France stage winner Michael Rasmussen:
What Cavendish just did is worse than what any russian lab could possible come up with ! Absolute #bs #Rio2106 Should be DQ
— Michael Rasmussen (@MRasmussen1974) August 15, 2016
Many others, however, viewed the crash as an unfortunate accident. Viviani, who Cavendish quickly apologized to, quickly stood up for Cavendish after the race, telling reporters after the race, “It’s not his fault.” Via CNN:
”The Korean guy was halfway on his wheel to the right -- normally you stay on the wheel.
“Cav was in the front and changed direction so it’s all normal. It’s a normal crash on the track.”
Cavendish apologized, too, taking responsibility for the accident but reiterating it was unintentional. That explanation makes sense given that he, too, was riding on a flimsy two-wheeled vehicle and could have very easily gone down in the fray. It is also questionable why Cavendish would have been motivated to take out a rider who was not in contention to win a medal.
Track cycling is a fast and intense sport. Riders often swing high up on the slanted velodrome track to allow other riders to pass and take their turns pacing the group from the front. They then swing back down to rejoin the group. The transition happens quickly, and usually goes smoothly. On occasion, however, signals get misconstrued and accidents happen. Race officials agreed, allowing Cavendish to stay in the race and eventually win silver.
The good news is Park is OK. He was hospitalized, but ultimately released with a mild contusion. But above all, it’s too bad that Park, 23 years old, was unable to finish the event for which he came to Rio to race.
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