Three cyclists collide at 40mph in terrifying crash at the Olympic velodrome… as bikes smash into pieces and fly everywhere in the women’s keirin

Three cyclists were seriously injured in a horrific high-speed crash at the Olympic cycling track on Thursday during the women’s keirin.

Medics rushed to the scene after cyclists slid down the road at the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines cycling stadium, tearing their bikes to pieces. Bystanders were stunned by the 40 mph (64 km/h) crash.

Three of the six participating cyclists were thrown from their bikes when Dutch star cyclist Steffie van der Peet fell from her bike. Her bike had slid out from under the bike and she collided with the people around her.

Van der Peet was riding on the outside of the peloton and in the blink of an eye she crashed uncontrollably into other unsuspecting riders who were just cooling down.

While being thrown from her bike, the Dutch cyclist collided with the rear wheel of Chinese Yuan Liying, who fell sideways to the ground, sending pieces of her bike flying through the air.

Van der Peet was left behind on her bike when the bike she was riding tipped over on her

Van der Peet (right) collided with the Chinese Yuan Liying (middle) and the Belgian Nicky Degrendele (far left)

Three cyclists were seriously injured in a horrific high-speed crash at the Olympic cycling stadium during the women’s keirin event

Machine parts flew through the air and cyclists got holes in their clothes

The women’s keirin heat was going smoothly until Van der Peet’s (orange) bike slipped from under her

A domino effect started when she hit Belgian Nicky Degrendele, after which the two became entangled as the momentum propelled them forward, while others tried to prevent them from becoming entangled.

Degrendele tried to stay on her machine and seemed to have avoided the worst incident, but in the end she was brought down and ended up over the handlebars, with her head appearing to hit the ground.

The Belgian appeared seriously distressed when medical staff rushed to her aid, while Chinese Liying was visibly upset when she was eventually helped back to her feet by support staff.

Van der Peet appeared to be in the worst condition: she had burns on her back and left leg. Her clothes were torn due to the speed of the crash.

All three were later carefully led away by concerned team members who had watched in horror as events unfolded as the Olympic event turned into a scene of destruction.

Meanwhile, the team’s technicians began to retrieve the badly damaged bikes. Some bikes had huge chunks of wheels missing and the handlebars were bent and loose.

The staff of the cycling stadium also got to work to repair the track. Small pieces of dirt were sucked up with a vacuum cleaner and dents in the surface were covered with pieces of tape.

Fortunately, all three riders were relatively unharmed after the long delay. Degrendele smiled and waved to the crowd as she was led away to the athlete seating area.

Doctors rushed to the scene as passengers involved in the crash were experiencing severe discomfort

The bicycle of the Belgian Degrendele is taken away, with the rear wheel destroyed

Van der Pet suffered burns on the track, as her left leg showed signs of her clothing having been worn away

Chinese Liying appeared visibly upset as she was helped off the track by support staff

The race was already over at the time of the crash. Degrendele was the only one of the three riders to reach the final of the women’s keirin, finishing in eleventh place.

Social media was flooded with messages from viewers who were stunned by the severity of the crash. If the participants had not been wearing helmets, they could have suffered serious injuries.

When I supported X, one of the comments said: ‘Absolutely intense! Great to hear everyone is doing well and the track is back in shape.’

Another added: ‘At least they’re okay’, and a third added: ‘It could be dangerous’.