Less than six weeks after an absolutely horrible crash left her with a broken jaw, Urška Žigart is back on the start line for the Tour de France Femmes.
The AG Insurance-Soudal rider crashed heavily during the second stage of the Tour de Suisse on June 18 after hitting a speed bump in the closing kilometres. Although she managed to reach the finish, her injuries forced her out of the race. It was awful to watch. The Slovenian hit the bump–which was in a terrible spot and many criticized the organizers for it–and hit the deck face first. Thankfully the injuries weren’t worse. Victoria’s Sarah Van Dam (Visma-Lease A Bike) was riding alone to second spot during the race, also hit it–but thankfully didn’t crash. You can watch her save below.
That same spot nearly took down van dam and she had no sprint pressure on her in second at the time. It seems to have been poorly visible and marked for a sudden bump pic.twitter.com/Hjxpg1YVjC
— Ross Tucker (@Scienceofsport) June 18, 2026
On the crash
Speaking ahead of the Tour, Žigart said she remembers very little about the incident.
“I don’t remember much,” she said to Sporza. “I just remember waking up on the ground and people asking if I knew where I was.”
She later watched footage of the crash but found it difficult to see.
“It didn’t look good,” she said. “I hope no family ever has to watch something like that on television.” In fact, it was reported her family requested the media not post images or video of it, since it was disturbing.
Despite the horror crash, Žigart was fortunate to be able to avoid surgery. The fracture remained properly aligned.
“I was very lucky,” she said. “I just had to be careful with how i moved around.”
Her recovery progressed faster than expected. It allowed her to return to the bike within days before joining her teammates at altitude camp to prepare for the Tour.
On the Tour de France Femmes
“I can’t say I’m in the form of my life, but after that horrible crash I know I have to enjoy my life,” Žigart said. “I’m very grateful to be here, to be able to walk, to ride my bike and enjoy all of this.” Sporza reported.
At this year’s Tour, Žigart’s primary role will be supporting teammate Kim Le Court in the battle for the yellow jersey, although she hopes to make the most of racing on familiar roads near Nice. She and partner Tadej Pogačar live in Monaco, so the French town is a cobblestone’s throw away.
“If I get the freedom to race there, I’d be very happy,” she said. Zigart has had a strong 2026, including an impressive eight at the Giro d’Italia, where her climbing skills gave her several top-10s on some tough stages.
Stage 1 of the Tour de France Femmes is in Lausanne, for a total of 138 km. Saturday’s stage should favour the sprinters, unless a break can stay away. You can watch every stage on Flobikes.com, and Canadian Cycling Magazine will have a report as soon as the day’s race is over.