Trek-Segafredo rider De Kort has three fingers amputated after crash

Koen de Kort, the 38-year-old Dutch rider with Trek-Segafredo, has had to have three fingers amputated after a nightmare accident.

De Kort, who rode the Giro last month and the Dutch road
championships just last weekend, suffered his hand injury in a non-cycling accident,
his team said in a statement.

The team said it was “sad to inform” people that de Kort had an accident while driving a vehicle off-road and had to have three fingers on his right hand amputated.

The Dutchman, who lives in Andorra, suffered the injury in the Pyrenees and had to be airlifted by helicopter to hospital Parc Tauli in Sabadell, in the province of Barcelona.

While surgeons tried for three hours to work on his hand, they were forced to amputate the three fingers.

“Unfortunately, Koen has lost the third, fourth, and
fifth finger of his right hand. The amputation has been total removal,” said
Trek-Segafredo’s Dr Manuel Rodrìguez Alonso.

“Dr Jorge Serrano, who operated on him and to whom we
must thank for his work, told me that from the first findings the functionality
of the hand will be maintained thanks to the thumb and index finger.

“The latter also suffered a considerable damage but, thanks to the efforts of the doctors, was saved from amputation,” he said, adding despite what had happened De Kort was “in good condition physically and mentally”.

“Because of considerable dirt around the wounds, the risk of infection has not been ruled out, but the most appropriate antibiotic therapy is being administered. Obviously, Koen will remain in the hospital for the next few days,” Dr Alonso said.

De Kort has been a pro rider since 2002 when he signed for Rabobank development team. He has been with Trek-Segafredo since 2017 and is currently on a one-year contract with the US WorldTour team.