Team Sky's Rowe breaks leg in rafting trip

[August 09, 2017]    (Reuters) - Team Sky rider Luke Rowe has broken his right leg during a white-water rafting trip and is set for a lengthy lay-off, the team said in a statement.

Team Sky rider Luke Rowe of Britain prepares to leave for a team training session in Zeist, Netherlands, July 2, 2015. The 2015 Tour de France cycling race will start in Utrecht, on Saturday July 4. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier

The 27-year-old, who sustained fractures to his tibia and fibula, has began his recovery process in Cardiff after undergoing a surgery.

"My brother Matt is getting married and so I was away with family and friends for his 'stag party'," Rowe said in the team statement.

"On the first morning we went whitewater rafting. I jumped down into the water but landed in a shallow section on my right leg.

"Being a bike rider you get in a lot of scrapes and you get used to injuries, but I knew straightaway that it was a bad one."

His coach Rod Ellingworth called it a "serious injury".

"An injury like this is a test of character for anyone, but character is something Luke has plenty of," Ellingworth said.

Rowe, Team Sky's road captain, rode on with a broken rib during the opening stage of the Tour de France to help Chris Froome win the title last month.

(Reporting by Hardik Vyas in Bengaluru; editing by Amlan Chakraborty)

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