Mayo’s An Post Sean Kelly team member David O’Loughlin is in a race against time to be fit for the upcoming Tour of Ireland after suffering a serious injury racing in Germany at the weekend. O’Loughlin crashed on Saturday while taking part in the fourth stage of the Sachsen-Tour International um den Sparkassen-Cup in Germany.
The Mayo native fell heavily on his face and had a minor operation in Germany before flying back to Dublin. O’Loughlin finished second at last month’s National Championships behind Nicholas Roche, who finished 23rd at last week’s Tour de France, but he is in a race against time to be fit for the Tour of Ireland in August, where he would compete against Lance Armstrong and Mark Cavendish, among a host of other top cyclists.
“It’s a nasty injury but also looks bad as it is his face,” An Post team manager Kurt Bogaerts said. “He collided with a rider in front of him but it was not David’s fault, there was nothing he could have done. It’s not looking great for David in terms of being ready for the Tour of Ireland in a few weeks, but you never know as it is a while away, so we will just have to wait and see. The team and sponsors wish him well and hope he has a speedy recovery.”
