Dutch cyclist Fabio Jakobsen has awoken from a medically-induced coma following a horrific crash in the Tour of Poland and will be able to return home soon, race organizers and doctors said on Friday.
"We have good news from the hospital in Sosnowiec! @FabioJakobsen is awake now from the coma. Condition is 'good'," the Tour of Poland said on Twitter.
Doctors at the hospital in southern Poland that is treating the 23-year-old rising star said they estimated he could leave in around two weeks' time.
"The patient is conscious. He is responding to commands and is breathing unaided. The blood pressure is normal. We are very happy today," Pawel Gruenpeter, deputy director of the hospital, told reporters.
"If he managed to survive such a big fall, he will surely return to the sport," he said, in comments shown on Polish television.
Gruenpeter said Jakobsen's brain function was "all in order" and he would now undergo a period of rehabilitation before his release.
Several other cyclists and a race official were also hurt in the crash but their injuries were less serious.
In another incident on Friday, French cyclist Mickael Delage suffered a heavy fall and was taken to hospital by helicopter, his team and Polish radio RMF24 said.
"Mickael Delage sustained a heavy fall on the Tour of Poland and has been taken to hospital. He is conscious," Groupama-FDJ said on Twitter.
In Wednesday's crash, Jakobsen was thrown into and over a barrier at 80 kilometers an hour on Wednesday as he raced elbow-to-elbow with fellow Dutchman Dylan Groenewegen in the opening stage of the Tour of Poland in Katowice.
Groenewegen, from the Jumbo-Visma team, veered suddenly to the right, squeezing his rival of Deceuninck-Quick Step into the security wall.
Jakobsen somersaulted over the barriers before colliding with a race official.
Groenewegen went on to win the stage but was later disqualified with Jakobsen declared the winner.
Jakobsen was left fighting for his life and underwent a five-hour operation immediately after the accident after sustaining severe injuries to the face.
Groenewegen on Thursday apologized saying: "I can't find the words to describe how sorry I am for Fabio and the others who fell or were affected.
"I am thinking about him all the time," he wrote.
