Teen cyclist killed at 2024 world championships not found for over 80 minutes, investigation reveals
An investigation has found a cyclist who was killed during the road world championships in 2024 was not found for more than 80 minutes after the crash.
Muriel Furrer, 18, of Switzerland, suffered a fatal head injury after crashing during the junior road race in Zurich.
The Zurich Public Prosecutors' Office opened a probe into her death and found Furrer crashed into a wooded area after leaving the road in wet conditions, on a course close to where she grew up.
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The incident was not seen by race officials and Furrer lay untreated for more than an hour.
Race marshals eventually found her on the 73.5km course and had her airlifted to hospital but she died of a head injury.
"The accident occurred at approximately 11:04am, out of sight of support vehicles, race officials, spectators, and marshals," the prosecutor's office said.
The screen shows cyclist Muriel Furrer, who sadly passed away after suffering a severe head injury at the UCI Paracycling and Road World Championships Getty
"The injured cyclist lay hidden in the undergrowth and was not visible from the road.
"The sudden disappearance of [the] athlete was not automatically reported. Due to these circumstances, the injured cyclist was not discovered until 12:26pm."
Despite live tracking of riders and radio being used in other races, including the Tour De France, neither was allowed in the world championships.
World governing body the UCI oversaw the race along with a local organising committee.
The cyclist's union said tracking of riders should have been introduced years ago.
"It's such an easy solution," CPA president Adam Hansen told BBC Sport in October.
Furrer competing in 2022. Getty
The public prosecutors said: "According to the investigation, the first emergency responders arrived at the scene of the accident just minutes after the cyclist was found and immediately began providing initial medical care.
"This was followed by the rescue of the seriously injured cyclist from the undergrowth and preparations for her transport to the hospital.
"No evidence of any criminally relevant breaches of duty was found, either in connection with the time-consuming rescue operation or with the subsequent medical care at the University Hospital Zurich."
Furrer's race number on the day, 84, was retired from women's junior road races last year.