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Fan taking selfie causes massive Tour de France crash

DSprofileby: Dustin Schutte07/17/23DLS1066206
tour de france
(Photo by Yong Teck Lim/Getty Images)

The Tour de France can be one of the most dangerous sporting events in the world, even without fan interference. But sometimes, spectators make the situation worse. One individual attempting to take a selfie during the prestigious event caused a massive crash during the 15th stage on Sunday.

About 30 miles into the stage, one spectator attempting to take a selfie reached their hand into the path of the cyclists. American Sepp Kuss was struck by the arm and crashed to the ground. That then caused a massive pile-up among other riders.

At these speeds, even the slightest bump can cause a serious collision.

Following the stage, Kuss spoke with Cycling News about the situation. He said it caught him by surprise.

“There was a spectator leaning into the road, I guess,” Kuss said. “It just happened suddenly, and that’s part of the Tour, there are a lot of people. Ideally, that wouldn’t happen, but it’s the biggest bike race in the world and a lot of people don’t know exactly what’s going on.

“There was a narrowing in a town. We were just trying to slow down the peloton to let the break go and then just on the side unfortunately, somebody wanted to get a selfie. I didn’t really see it coming.”

On the positive side, none of the cyclists suffered any serious injuries as a result of the crash. That’s pretty fortunate, as riders can sustain pretty significant injuries during these kinds of situations.

Kuss said the adrenaline helped him get through the rest of the stage.

“I mean you just have to keep going, there’s nothing else to do about it,” he said. “It’s inconvenient, but it could have been worse, and I still felt pretty good on the bike.”

While participants in the Tour de France love the fanfare and support they receive on the course, they want to remind spectators to respect the boundaries.

“I’d like to tell the spectators to enjoy the race and be there to cheer for us without standing on the road or pouring beers on us,” said race leader Jonas Vingegaard, per TMZ Sports.

“Please be careful, so that the party remains a party for the racers but equally for you. You don’t need a phone to create mind-blowing memories,” Team Confidis said in a tweet.

In other words, pay attention and please, stay the hell out of the way.

The Tour de France is the most popular cycling event the world. The 21-stage race began on July 1 and runs through July 23.