VIDEO: Couple wish seriously injured cyclist a speedy recovery

A couple that saw a cyclist seriously injure himself during a bike ride with friends has wished him a speedy recovery and praised the emergency services.
Jennifer and Aldo Olmi from Alderney Road, FerringJennifer and Aldo Olmi from Alderney Road, Ferring
Jennifer and Aldo Olmi from Alderney Road, Ferring

The 18-year-old from Worthing was cycling down Bost Hill in High Salvington at 10.30am on Thursday when he fell from his bike and seriously injured his head. Click here for the original story.

Aldo and Jennifer Olmi from Ferring were walking their cockapoo Ruby in The Gallops in High Salvington before the accident.

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They were about to cross Bost Hill to get to the car park as the cyclist rode past with his two friends.

Jennifer and Aldo Olmi from Alderney Road, FerringJennifer and Aldo Olmi from Alderney Road, Ferring
Jennifer and Aldo Olmi from Alderney Road, Ferring

Aldo said he saw the front wheel of the bike turn left suddenly, causing the cyclist to go ‘straight over the top’ of the handlebars and fall head-first on the ground.

Aldo, 77, said it left him ‘feeling speechless’: “It happened so quickly but also in slow motion; I could see him falling through the air and landing.

“You think the worst. We have grandsons who are the same age, and you can’t help but imagine if it was them, what would you do?

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“We are very sorry that it happened like that. Whatever caused it we don’t know, but we just hope he gets better very quickly. Going by his friends, if he was as nice as them he would have been a very nice young man.”

The cyclist was rushed to hospital after falling off his bike and seriously injuring himself. Picture: Eddie MitchellThe cyclist was rushed to hospital after falling off his bike and seriously injuring himself. Picture: Eddie Mitchell
The cyclist was rushed to hospital after falling off his bike and seriously injuring himself. Picture: Eddie Mitchell

After the fall, people in the car park rushed over to the cyclist, and Aldo turned away traffic while the emergency services were called.

The second driver he spoke to was a doctor, who treated the teenager before an ambulance, two paramedic cars and the air ambulance arrived to treat him.

Police also attended the scene and closed the road.

The cyclist was wearing a helmet, and the young men were all riding their bikes sensibly, Aldo said.

The air ambulance was at the scene of the fall this morning. Picture: Derek McCourtyThe air ambulance was at the scene of the fall this morning. Picture: Derek McCourty
The air ambulance was at the scene of the fall this morning. Picture: Derek McCourty
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Mrs Olmi, 74, consoled the cyclist’s two friends, who she said were ‘beside themselves’.

The coffee merchant and his wife praised the ‘fantastic response’ of the emergency services. Mr Olmi said: “The police could not have been nicer. The way the officer spoke to those two boys was so nice and gentle.

“The response from the ambulance men was fantastic too. So quick.”

The teenager was driven by ambulance to the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton after the fall, where he remains in a ‘serious condition’, Sussex Police said.

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