Alison Starnes (TIBCO) was very excited to show up to the start line in her new leader's jersey.(Image credit: Jon Devich)
Allison Starnes (TIBCO) rounded off the podium today with her third place(Image credit: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us)
The top three in the womens field are Alison Powers (Vera Bradley Foundation) first, Tara Whitten (Keller Rorhback) second and Alison Starnes (TIBCO) third.(Image credit: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us)
Alison Starnes (Tibco-To the Top) fractured her pelvis in two places following a crash during stage one of the Bend Memorial Clinic Cascade Cycling Classic on Wednesday.
“It was a compressed fracture,” said team directeur sportif Emma Rickards. “She landed on her hip and the ball of her femur put stress onto the bottom part of her pelvis that caused two hairline fractures.”
Starnes crashed inside the first 30 kilometres of the professional women’s 116-kilometre road race from Bend to Three Creeks Snow Park. She was airlifted to the St Charles Medical Centre in Bend where doctors confirmed two hairline fractures on the right side of her pelvis, according to Rickards.
“She started to drift back in the group on a descent because the number on her frame was irritating her,” Rickards said. “There was a crash in front of her, she got through it but someone swerved, crashed and she went into the gravel and she crashed too.
“She can get back on the bike in four to six weeks,” she added. “She got out of the hospital last night. She was very emotional and she was in and out of shock and on a lot of pain medication.”
Starnes placed third in the opening prologue behind stage winner Alison Powers (Vera Bradley Foundation) and Tara Whitten (Keller Rorhback Cycling Team). She was in promising contention to maintain her place amongst the top three in the overall classification heading into stage two’s 25-kilometre Skyliner Rd Time Trial, an event she won the previous year.
“She was fighting hard with me to get back on the bike to continue racing and she was really focused on the time trial,” Rickards said. “She has come into some good form with her time trial and wanted to do well. We know she could have climbed well in that road race as well. In the short term, she was really disappointed about the missing the time trial and long term, her potential to be selected for Worlds.”
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Kirsten Frattini is the Deputy Editor of Cyclingnews, overseeing the global racing content plan.
Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling's biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games.
She began her sports journalism career with Cyclingnews as a North American Correspondent in 2006. In 2018, Kirsten became Women's Editor – overseeing the content strategy, race coverage and growth of women's professional cycling – before becoming Deputy Editor in 2023.
