Not what anyone wants to see; Martyn Irvine being taken from the velodrome at the Ghent Six Day this evening, Tuesday.
Martyn Irvine’s rollercoaster 2013 has continued in Belgium tonight, Tuesday, after he crashed out of the Ghent Six Day and left the velodrome for hospital on a stretcher.
The Newtownards man and world scratch champion had secured an invitation to the famous meeting after taking World Cup victory in the points race in Manchester last month and spending most of this year ranked No 1 in the pursuit and scratch race despite suffering a broken hip in March.
However, he came off his bike on the opening evening of competition and after spending some time crashed on the track he was stretchered out of the arena.
Reports from Belgium are sketchy this evening but they suggest while early fears were of a broken left femur, Irvine may have come away with severe bruising to his leg.
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However, it must be absolutely stressed at this point that his condition is not clear. He was conscious leaving the track and appeared to have his left leg strapped down to the stretcher.
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We will bring you more news when we have it and hopefully it will be as positive as possible.
Irvine was partnering Danish rider Marc Hester, who won last year’s Copenhagen Six-Day.
They were competing against many of the biggest names in six-day racing including Iljo Keisse, Robert Bartko and Franco Marvulli.
Keisse and An Post-Chainreaction rider Glenn O’Shea are the reigning Ghent champions, but O’Shea is not in this week’s line up. Keisse is instead partnering fellow Belgian Wim Stroetinga.
The race consists of six evenings of various types of races including time trials, sprints, madisons and derny races.
Crashing out will come as a major blow to Irvine, but if he is spared a broken leg and his second period in just nine months in rehab on the side lines he will count himself lucky.
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