During Sunday’s match between MOONFIN MALESA Ostrow Wlkp. and ABRAMCZYK POLONIA Bydgoszcz, Luke Becker was involved in a horrific-looking fall, resulting in a fracture of three cervical vertebrae. The American has already undergone surgery, as informed by Ostrów’s club coach Kamil Brzozowski in a conversation with us.
- The crash occurred in the last race of the day. Becker was unintentionally hit by his teammate Frederik Jakobsen, causing both to fall on the track.
- – Luke was conscious the whole time. From the start, he was in pain, and it was apparent even on the track that it wasn’t a minor injury – says Kamil Brzozowski, coach of MOONFIN MALESA Ostrow Wlkp.
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In one of the sixth-round METALKAS 2. Ekstraliga matches between Ostrow Wlkp. and Bydgoszcz, a fatal fall occurred. In the fifteenth and last race, when the match’s outcome was already decided, a crash happened involving two local riders – Luke Becker was hit from behind by Frederik Jakobsen unaware of the danger. The Danish rider quickly got up from the track, but an ambulance came for the American, taking him to Ostrow’s hospital.
– Luke was transferred to a hospital in Wrocław on Sunday, where he resides and where better medical care is available. The surgery was scheduled for 14:00, so Luke is slowly recovering from all of this – says Kamil Brzozowski, coach of MOONFIN MALESA Ostrow Wlkp.
Further examinations revealed Becker had a fracture of three cervical vertebrae – Th3, Th5, and Th7. – Fortunately, apart from these fractures, nothing else happened. He retained sensation in his legs the entire time. Luke was in a lot of pain, and the biggest problem was removing his helmet as the fractured vertebrae in the cervical section were involved.
The Ostrow coach states that the American was always aware of the situation around him, and despite a strong head impact on the track, he didn’t lose consciousness. – Luke was conscious the entire time. From the start, he was in pain, and it was apparent even on the track that it wasn’t a minor injury – Brzozowski explains.
Due to their leader’s injury, MOONFIN MALESA Ostrow will use a rider replacement in Thursday’s match against HUNTERS PSŻ Poznań. However, management is not ruling out bringing someone in to replace him in the future. – I don’t think there is any rider in the world now that could adequately replace Luke Becker. For now, we’re opting for ZZ, but we’re cautiously looking at the speedway market – the coach noted.
The club still includes Norbert Krakowiak, who was replaced over a month ago by Grzegorz Walasek. However, Krakowiak is still struggling with some health issues. – Norbert’s shoulder acted up again during the last training. He has a few days off, but will attend Wednesday’s training.
How long might Luke Becker’s break from speedway motorcycling and absence in MOONFIN MALESA Ostrow‘s lineup last? – One person might recover faster from such an injury, another slower, but I think 12-16 weeks of recovery is the minimum – concluded Kamil Brzozowski.
Marcin Rusewicz
