Getty Image
After Jonas Vingegaard won the 2022 and 2023 Tours de France, it appeared as if the Danish cyclist was set to dominate the race for years to come. Since then, injuries and Slovenian super Tadej Pogacar has prevented that from happening. But Vingegaard may also have his Visma Lease-A-Bike team to blame after suffering a nasty concussion in this year’s edition of Paris-Nice.
Vingegaard has not raced since his March 13 crash in the 2025 edition of Paris-Nice, which was won by American teammate Matteo Jorgensen for the second year running. He’s since suffered significant post-concussion symptoms and recently revealed that neither team nor race doctors checked him for a concussion despite falling on his face.
“I went to the race doctor because I had some blood on my face – I was bleeding – but they never once checked me for concussion, which I find a bit odd, to be honest,” he said.
“It was visible that my glasses were broken, I had blood on my face, I even had a little bit of blood here on the eyebrow. For me, that was a bit odd that they didn’t check me for concussion.”
According to cycling‘s governing body, the UCI, riders should undergo an immediate assessment after a ‘potential concussive event.’ medical staff are instructed to look for ‘red flags’, such as loss of consciousness and vomiting, as well as lesser ‘observable signs’ including facial injuries. The rider’s team staff are expected to take appropriate action when race doctors are not available. Neither assesed Vingegaard until after the stage.
Jonas Vingegaard Describes Awful Concussion Symptoms Following Paris-Nice Crash
Vingegaard explained that in the days following the crash, his symptoms became more severe.
“When I had been awake for about an hour or so, I had to sleep for about an hour and a half for the first three, four days,” he said. “I did have a concussion, and I was really suffering from it at the start. Every day it was getting a little bit better.
“By Monday, I was thinking I could try get on the bike again, just one hour of a recovery ride, which backfired pretty much. Afterwards, I was completely dizzy and nauseous. I had to go lay down and sleep again, and then I didn’t touch my bike for the next four days.”
Thankfully, Vingegaard has since recovered He plans to race the historic Criterium du Dauphine, which begins on June 8, before heading to the Tour de France later that month. While his preparation is less than ideal, and Pogacar now enters the Tour as a massive favorite, it’s good to see Vingegaard back healthy and with his concussion symptoms behind him.
