Daan Myngheer died following a heart attack (Image credit: Roubaix Lille Metropole)
It has been a dark Easter weekend for the sport of cycling, which has been left to mourn the death of not one but two professional riders in the space of two cruel days.
Almost 24 hours after it was announced that Antoine Demoitié had died of injuries sustained in a crash and motorbike collision at Gent-Wevelgem, news broke that Daan Myngheer, comatose and fighting for his life after suffering a heart attack at the Criterium International on Saturday, had passed away also.
As was the case with Demoitié, tributes for the 22-year-old flowed in from riders, teams, and friends across social media, with many expressing their sadness, paying their respects to the Belgian's loved ones, and simply trying to come to terms with a devastating couple of days.
"We will never forget you, Daan. Rest in peace, champion," read the message of Myngheer's team, Roubaix Lille Métropole, on Twitter, accompanied by a black and white image of the rider.
Elsewhere, numerous messages were posted by fellow riders.
Messages of support also came in from the French-speaking cycling community.
"RIP Daan. My condolences to his family and loved ones. A nightmarish weekend for cycling," said the Etixx-QuickStep rider Maxime Bouet, while Direct Energie rider Fabrice Jeandesboz added: "Dramatic weekend for cycling... My thoughts are with their loved ones. RIP."
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After many called for action to be taken with regards to race vehicles and rider safety in the wake of Demoitié's death, Sam Dumoulin repeated calls for action to be taken to prevent any such tragedies ever repeating themselves in the future.
"Another difficult thing to wake up to," he wrote on Twitter. "Two deaths for different reasons to which we must find solutions: Let's do something about it! RIP Daan Myngheer."
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