"It’s hard to know whether the findings will bring us peace" - Muriel Furrer's parents still waiting for deadly crash investigation results

The death of Muriel Furrer at the 2024 World Championships was one that was critical for the cycling world and has brough back to the surface some of its safety issues. In this cases Furrer crashed out of sight of any other rider or race staff and due to the lack of a GPS tracking system or radio, she was only discovered around hour and a half later. She died after her crash in Zurich, and there are still no definitive findings at this time.

“It’s hard to know whether the findings will bring us peace. Clearly, a serious mistake was made. Muriel was only found 90 or 100 minutes after the crash. If she had been discovered sooner, maybe she would have had a chance of survival," Furrer's father told Les Temps.

During the junior women's road race in Zurich, Furrer crashed into a forest section and later passed away from her injuries. The time it took for her to receive assistance may have played a role in the tragic outcome. “Many questions remain unanswered. But when a mistake happens, there are inevitably people responsible".

But on who the responsibility lies is subjective at this point. However the lack of race radios in the event, something almost exclusive to the World Championships when it comes to pro cycling, is an incredibly bad coincidence on something that could've prevented the passing of the at-the-time 18-year old. "When we know exactly what happened and who bears responsibility, maybe we can prevent such a tragedy from happening again.”

And this safety applies to many aspects of the sport, one of them being the time trial helmets, perhaps brought up by Furrer's father after witnessing Stefan Küng's crash at the 2023 European Championships in which he suffered a concussion and face injuries, but was allowed to ride to the finish fully bloodied. “We really need to improve cyclists’ safety. They’re designed for aerodynamics, not for safety.”