FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Officials with the Walmart Joe Martin Stage Race have confirmed that a bike crash two kilometers from the finish line has led to injuries for contestants.
Bruce Dunn, the race director stated that about "20 - 25 racers were involved in a crash, and medical is assessing the injuries." Dunn also said that there were so far no serious injuries confirmed.
A stage race is a road cycling race in which each day counts as a "stage" and each stage has a winner. The overall race winner in both the men's and women’s races is the fastest cyclist when the results of all the race days are combined. This is called General Classification (GC). Across the pro, elite, and amateur race categories, more than 250 athletes from 23 countries and all 50 states are expected to participate.
Some notable athletes this year are:
- Miquel Angel “Superman” Lopez – Winner of stages in the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a España, and the Tour de Suisse in 2016.
- Sergio Henao – Winner of the 2017 Paris-Nice race and a stage in the 2013 Giro d’Italia.
- Leah Kirchmann – UCI World Champion and 7-time Canadian national champion.
- Lauren Stephens – U.S. national champion.
- Clara Honsigner – 3-time U.S. national champion.
Free and open to the public, the WJMSR race and festivities began Thursday and are still set to end Sunday with the Experience Fayetteville Criterium where spectators can view racers speeding through a 1.2-mile circuit.
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