On her second day back in training, Letizia was hit by a car at a roundabout resulting in a fractured left scaphoid and a broken front tooth. She remained conscious throughout and no concussion has been detected.
The accident took place on familiar home roads in Trentino, Italy, between Arco di Trento and Riva del Garda around 9:30 AM. Fortunately, neither Letizia nor the vehicle were travelling at high speed and the driver immediately stopped to provide assistance until an ambulance arrived.
Letizia Paternoster (ITA) on her way to fourth place finish at Boels Ladies Tour 2019 Prologue.
Team Doctor Nino Daniele is in contact with the Arco hospital and confirmed Letizia’s injuries: “Letizia suffered a small detachment on the lateral side of the left-hand scaphoid and a front-tooth fracture which was repaired by her dentist after leaving hospital. Regarding the scaphoid, the doctors in Arco applied a transitory cast to keep it immobile.
“In the afternoon, Letizia was visited by an orthopedist who confirmed that she does not need surgery. As a precaution, tomorrow she will be submitted to a MRI scan and the cast will be replaced with a small tailored cast. This will allow her to put her hand on the handlebar and ride on a home trainer. The prognosis for full recovery is 30 days.”
After her visit to the hospital and dentist, Letizia said, “everything happened so quickly that I was not able to understand. I only reacted with my hand to lessen the fall. When I calmed down, I was able to tell that my head was ok, then I focussed on my hand. Unfortunately, the x-ray confirmed the bad feeling.”
Despite the setback she is maintaining a positive outlook: “The disappointment is huge. Today was only my second day of training after returning from holiday and post-season rest. Of course, it’s not the best way to start the new season, but despite everything I want to look ahead, think positive and react. A hand fracture must not affect my preparation for the important 2020 season.”
