Rabobank’s Pedro Horrillo returned to the scene of his near-fatal crash in this year’s Giro d’Italia this week. The 35-year-old crashed on stage eight of the race between Morbegno and Bergamo, hitting a barrier on the descent of the Culmine di San Pietro and falling at least 60 metres into a ravine. He sustained fractures to his right femur and kneecap, and his neck, as well as a punctured lung; he was put into an induced coma to help him recover.
“I returned because I was born a second time,” Horrillo told la Gazzetta dello Sport. “The first time on 27 September 1974, the second time on 16 May 2009, when I fell on the rocks.”
After visiting the hospital in Bergamo and the staff that had treated him, he was accompanied on his return to the scene by several of his rescuers. They explained the events of the day to him, as he has no memory of it.
“I have looked at the spot where it happened and it’s amazing that I’m still alive,” he said. “It really shocked me. I feel like a cat with nine lives.”
It had originally been planned for Horrillo to return to the scene by bike, but snow on the climb forced this to be changed and the trip was completed by car.