Van Hooydonck, at the last Tour de France.David Ramos (Getty Images)
The cycling world remains hearts in its mouth, concerned about the health of Jumbo Visma Team cyclist Nathan Van Hooydonck (Wuustwezel, Belgium; 27 years old), who is in critical condition after a serious car accident. This is explained by the Belgian media Het Laatste Nieuws, adding that the racer suffered a heart attack while driving, lost control of his car and crashed into five other vehicles in the center of Kalmthout (Belgium). “Our cyclist felt unwell while driving his car, which led to a road accident. He was later shifted to the hospital where he is receiving good medical care. We cannot confirm that his condition is critical. He is undergoing new medical examinations. Thank you everyone for your messages to Nathan and the team,” concluded an official Jumbo statement.
Van Hooydonck was traveling with his pregnant wife at the time of the accident and sustained minor injuries. Not the case with the cyclist, who had to be resuscitated before being taken to hospital. With a contract with Jumbo until 2024, the Belgian is one of the team’s mainstays, a luxury journeyman.
This season he completed the most important spring classics, the Criterium Dauphiné, and the Tour de France which ended with the triumph of his teammate Jonas Vingegaard. The same thing happened recently at the Tour of Britain, where Van Hooydonck did what he could to ensure the success of his then leader Wout Van Aert. Now it is unknown what will happen to the cyclist. “The team doesn’t know more than what the media has said. He had an accident and went to the hospital. It is very worrying news for us and the runners. “We hope they don’t mind at the Vuelta and he can recover as quickly as possible,” Jumbo-Visma sports director Grischa Niermann told Vuelta media.
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