Approval made following a CT-scan check-up on Thursday
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Tom Boonen (Etixx-QuickStep) wins Munsterland Giro(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Podium kisses for Tom Boonen (Etixx-QuickStep)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Tom Boonen (Etixx-QuickStep) holding his head after crashing at Abu Dhabi Tour(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Tom Boonen leaves the race in an ambulance(Image credit: Tim de Waele)
Tom Boonen (Etixx-QuickStep) wins Munsterland Giro(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Medical staff at the Abu Dhabi hospital where Tom Boonen is receiving treatment for a temporal bone fracture sustained in a crash last week have provided an all-clear for him to fly home to Belgium. Doctors made the approval following a CT-scan check-up on Thursday.
"Tom's situation is evolving as we expected," said Etixx-QuickStep team doctor Yvan Vanmol. "Once he gets back to Belgium, Tom will have to observe a few weeks of rest, after which we can begin to plan for the 2016 season.”
Boonen crashed during stage 2 at the Abu Dhabi Tour last Friday (October 9), where it was reported that he initially lost consciousness before sitting up, and he was able to answer questions but felt a little dizzy. Upon immediate examination at the hospital doctors determined that he had fractured his left temporal bone.
Boonen told Sporza that the doctors initially told him that he could need a span of six months to recovery but that he believed it would only take a month, "That's about the time that a break needs to recover. They are especially afraid of the trauma, but when I'm back in Belgium, I will be examined thoroughly once more,” he told Sporza.
Boonen was joined by his partner, Lore, on Tuesday. They will stay in Abu Dhabi for a few days before returning to Europe.
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