Eighteen months have passed since Muriel Furrer died after crashing during the junior women’s road race at the 2024 UCI Road World Championships in Zürich.
Furrer lay undiscovered for 82 minutes after the crash. The 18-year-old died of a traumatic head injury.
Investigation Concludes No Foul Play
The investigation into her death has been closed, according to the public prosecutor’s office in Zürich. The report stated that no third-party involvement or “criminally relevant breach of duty” was found.
Furrer crashed alone on a descent, unseen and “out of sight of support vehicles, race officials, spectators, and marshals.” No tracking equipment was employed, and there were no race radios.
The Day of the Race
The news editor at Cycling Weekly was in Zürich that day, covering the World Championships and was unaware that Furrer was fighting for her life. Cat Ferguson won the race on the Thursday.
The UCI informed people hours later that Furrer was in a critical condition, with little known about the incident. The next day, it was announced that she had died.
The week continued, with Lotte Kopecky and Tadej Pogačar winning events on the same course where Furrer crashed. The atmosphere felt empty.
Questions Raised Over Race Safety
At a press conference the day after Furrer died, UCI president David Lappartient sidestepped questions on what could have been done differently. He also downplayed the idea of race radios in Worlds events.
Last week, Tom Pidcock said his race radio saved him after he crashed off the road at the Volta a Catalunya.
Cycling is a dangerous sport, one in which serious accidents can happen.