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Kate O’Brien involved in serious training crash in Calgary

The Olympic track specialist is currently in hospital, reports say. A prognosis won't be forthcoming for days

Kate O'Brien
Kate O'Brien
Kate O’Brien celebrates a heat win during the women’s sprint competition at the 2015 Pan Am Games. Photo: Ruby Photo Studio

During a training ride in Calgary on Monday evening, Olympic track cyclist Kate O’Brien was involved in a serious crash, putting the world-class Canadian athlete in the hospital.

O’Brien is currently receiving care at Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary.

According to reports, O’Brien was motorpacing during part of her ongoing training when her rear tire blew out, which resulted in a dramatic fall. Early neurological tests have shown encouraging results. Still, it is expected to be several days before a prognosis of her condition can be made, as well as any estimates for a timeline of her recovery.

Born in 1988, O’Brien came to track cycling late, after pursuing the bobsleigh. At the Pan Am Games in 2015, she took gold medal win in the team sprint along with Monique Sullivan. In 2016, O’Brien took second place in both the kierin and the sprint at the Milton International Challenge, before following up those results with an identical finish at the Festival of Speed. In February, she and Amelia Walsh took silver at the track cycling World Cup in Los Angeles.

O’Brien’s many friends and colleagues, who have rallied around her during her recovery, request that her privacy be respected.

Major updates on O’Brien’s condition will be made in due course.