Woman pushed off bike by car passenger left with broken arm, missing front tooth and mental scars
The 55-year-old woman, who has asked to remain anonymous, said she was a newcomer to cycling and her enjoyment has been 'spoilt'
A woman filmed being deliberately pushed off her bike has contacted Cycling Weekly, revealing that the attack left her with a broken front tooth, a fracture, scratches and bruises as well as what she's described as "mental scars."
The video which showed a passenger leaning out of a car window to deliberately push the woman off her bike was shared widely on social media, after it was obtained by the Irish cycling website, Sticky Bottle.
The 55-year-old woman told us the incident, which took place on a quiet country lane, happened at the end of September 2018.
The rider, who has asked to remain anonymous, says she was "shocked" to see the video shared, adding: "I still hadn't fully recovered physical or mentally, although I'm getting there."
She revealed that at the time of the incident, she was a newcomer to cycling, following a 40-year break.
"When I started to cycle at the beginning of 2018 I was so proud of myself as were my 3 grown up children. These d**kheads have spoilt all that.
"I lost my front tooth, cracked a bone in top of my arm, had really bad bruising and scratches off the thorns all over me, including my face.
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"My coat was ripped to shreds as was my front tyre. My wheel was also buckled. And that's without my mental scars."
The footage of the hooded individual leaning out of the car window to push the women from her bike was shared on Twitter and YouTube.
After it was shared by Cycling Weekly, readers commented expressing anger at the assult and concern for the woman involved.
Contacting us, she added: "Thank you to everyone for the comments calling these horrible human beings and for concern about my welfare."
The video was far from the first of its kind. In spring, journalist and cyclist Jeremy Vine shared an old video of another passenger leaning out of a car to push a cycling into a ditch, whilst laughing.
>>> Moment cyclist attacked by road rage driver caught on camera
In December, a 53-year-old farmer was convicted of pushing two cyclists off their bikes in Northern Ireland.
Grant Shaw Stephen McKee was walking along a pavement near Belfast when the incident happened on February 3.
He was seen waving at the two cyclists, before pushing them into each other and causing them to fall, the Belfast Telegraph reported.
The riders, Terry Nicoletti and Noel Boyce, are members of the North Down Cycling Club and were riding a weekend event organised by the group.
Both riders’ clothes were damaged, along with Mr Boyce’s bike causing around £250 worth of damage.
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Michelle Arthurs-Brennan the Editor of Cycling Weekly website. An NCTJ qualified traditional journalist by trade, Michelle began her career working for local newspapers. She's worked within the cycling industry since 2012, and joined the Cycling Weekly team in 2017, having previously been Editor at Total Women's Cycling. Prior to welcoming her daughter in 2022, Michelle raced on the road, track, and in time trials, and still rides as much as she can - albeit a fair proportion indoors, for now.
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