In the pro cycle, crashes are part of the deal. But what happened to the 18-year-old Muriel Furrer at the World Championships last year was not just a crash. It was a failure of the system to protect it. With a serious head injury in a Swiss forest an hour and a half before the discoveryThe promising junior racing driver never made it home and died in the hospital after the day. While we can only speculate whether a quick medical reaction would have saved her life, the UCI has finally decided to do something to prevent such scenarios.
GPS tracking
Now, a year later and in the shadow of a police examination of the deadly crash, the UCI takes a step and hopes that this will never happen again. When the 2025 Road World Championships in the Kigali, RwandaNext month, every driver will be equipped with a GPS security tracker. The technology shows its location in real time and conjures up faster when things go wrong.
The rollout starts next week at the Female Romandia tour (August 15), where a driver per team carries the device. In Kigali, which runs from September 21st to 28th, the entire peloton is followed. Live data feed on rapid reaction in an accident with racing control, medical crews and UCI officials.
Furrer's crash in Zurich on September 27, 2024 occurred only 20 minutes from her hometown ei. She died in the hospital a day later. Her bike only wore one transponder to record passing control points, and not a tracker to locate it in an emergency. According to the sport, two separate offers for the use of public persecution systems before the race due to time restrictions and data concerns were declined. The examination of the Swiss police in their death remains.
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Finally, UCI take measures
The UCI's explanation on Thursday states that the GPS system “strengthen the monitoring of driver safety during the races and enable a quick reaction in the event of incidents”. The press release continued and called the initiative “an important step forward to ensure the safety of the drivers … The UCI will continue to work closely with the organizers and everyone involved in order to the more comprehensive implementation of such technologies in the coming seasons.”
With the hug of a stricter tracking technology, the UCI finally makes a childcare step to improve the safety of the drivers. And the worlds in Kigali will also be historical in other ways. It is the first time that the World Championships are held on the African continent. When the world observes, it is an opportunity for cycling to prove that the teachings drawn by the tragedy can lead to real changes.
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