Australian cyclist Jay Vine received three stitches to his forehead after a crash in the UCI World Championships time trial left him bloodied and bruised.
The 28-year-old finished fifth in the event, won by Belgium's Remco Evenepoel, crossing the line with blood pouring down his face and rips to the left side of his skinsuit, with the incident not seen on TV. Writing on Instagram afterwards, Vine said he was "gutted" and "heartbroken" by the crash.
"It's gut wrenching to think what could have been," he wrote. "Silly mistake on a non-technical section of the course cost me potentially the bronze medal. I just went into a corner faster than I did in the course recon and ran out of road. Simple as that.
"I'm going to be beating myself up about this one for a while. Heartbroken. 5th place is still good, but for the time being I'm gutted. Sorry team, I really tried."
Later that evening, Vine posted an image to his Instagram stories, showing himself with a small number of fresh stitches to his brow.
The Australian's injuries were laid out on Monday in an update from his UAE Team Emirates medical director, Dr Adrian Rotunno, which read: "Luckily [Vine] suffered no concussions or fractures. Laceration to left side of forehead (fixed with 3 stitches at local hospital) and superficial abrasions to his shoulder.
"He should be cleared to compete in the road race next weekend."
Vine's crash came in the final 10km of the 46.1km course, and was not picked up by the cameras. The Australian clocked in third quickest to the second and third intermediate time checks, behind silver medallist Filippo Ganna and eventual winner Evenepoel, before mysteriously losing time.
When he appeared at the finish line, his battered appearance made it clear he had hit the tarmac in the latter moments of his effort. He pulled up afterwards, reached for a towel from his soigneur, and calmly dabbed the blood off his face.
Earlier this year, Vine spent time in intensive care after he suffered three spinal fractures in a crash at April's Itzulia Basque Country. He missed four months of racing, before returning at the Vuelta a Burgos, where he won the time trial on stage four. Vine then went on to win the mountains classification at the Vuelta a España.
"The team has been in constant contact to try and get me ready with everything," he said after his victory at the Vuelta a Burgos. "Four months ago, I was in the ICU, not far from here actually. To be on the top step of a stage in a time trial, after what I went through, is incredible."
The images of Vine's Worlds crash recalled similar ones of Stefan Küng at last year's European Championships. The Swiss rider crashed into a metal barrier at the event, and finished with a cracked helmet and blood-spattered jersey. He was later revealed to have suffered fractures to his jaw and hand, as well as a minor concussion.
