Rio 2016: Annemiek van Vleuten reveals extent of facial injuries after horror crash in Olympic road race
The 33-year-old Dutch cyclist fell off her bike on the final descent during Sunday's road race
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Your support makes all the difference.Annemiek van Vleuten has revealed the extent of her facial injuries after her crash in the women’s road race at the Rio Olympic Games.
The 33-year-old Dutch cyclist was leading Sunday's race when she came off her bike while negotiating a sharp turn on the course’s final descent.
Van Vleuten, who lay motionless on the track after the accident, was admitted to intensive care with concussion and three fractures to her spine.
The Vleuten-born rider has now posted an image of her facial injuries to her official Twitter account.
“Thanks for all the messages,” she wrote in the tweet, which showed severe bruising and swelling to Van Vleuten's face.
“Hard to deal with my disappointment but also proud about our performance #teamNL”
Van Vleuten previously reassured her supporters that she would recover from her hospital bed, tweeting on Monday: “I am now in the hospital with some injuries and fractures, but will be fine.
“Most of all super disappointed after best race of my career,” she added.
Her mother, Ria, told RTL News that she believed her daughter was dead when she saw the collision.
Sunday’s road race was won by Van Vleuten’s compatriot Anna van der Breggen in three hours, 51 minutes and 27 seconds.
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