Sunday 19 June 2011

Soler Shows Swiss Recovery Signs

Juan Mauricio Soler 

The condition of the Colombian cyclist Juan Mauricio Soler continues to improve but he remains in an induced coma in hospital following his crash during the Tour of Switzerland.

There are no signs of pressure on Soler's brain and doctors have been able to reduce his medication. However, he is still being kept in a coma at a hospital in St Gallen. Soler fractured his skull and ankle after tumbling on to a spectator and then hitting a fence during stage six on Thursday.

At the time Soler's Movistar team issued a statement to say the 28 year-old rider had been diagnosed with bleeding on the brain, as well as "multiple fractures and hematomas.

"He's in intensive care and it's very serious," team doctor Alfredo Zuniga said.

"He's unconscious but fortunately he's in a stable condition and for now there don't seem to be any complications."

Movistar have said the crash happened during the opening phase of Thursday's sixth stage. Soler was airlifted to a hospital in St. Gallen, where he was treated in intensive care.

Tour organisers were unclear about how the crash happened, however some reports have said that the winner of the King of the Mountains classification at the 2007 Tour de France fell following a collision with a spectator.

Until the crash, Soler had been holding onto second place overall and was less than a minute behind leader Damiano Cunego of Italy.

Soler won the second stage on Sunday and dedicated the victory to former Movistar team-mate Xavier Tondo, who died in a freak accident last month.


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