August 14, 2009 – For mountain biking’s 2009 World Championships due to be held in Canberra, Australia, Ralph Näf was considered to be one of the most serious contenders for a gold medal. But the Swiss rider crashed in practice, suffering such a serious flesh wound on his elbow that he had to be taken to the hospital by helicopter to get immediate surgery.

Therefore his participation at the 2009 MTB World Championships is seriously in danger. “I want to win in Canberra, and if this injury keeps me from working out properly, it does not make sense to participate at the Worlds,” Näf commented on the state of his health.

Näf has already cancelled his participation at the Worlds’team relay race, but he has not come to a definite decision regarding his start at the World championship’s main race. “I have to see how quickly I can recover during the next few days,” Näf commented. He plans to come to a decision by August 27 if he still is going to fly to Australia on short term. But he only plans to travel to the Worlds if he feels competitive to battle for the victory.

Näf still was lucky as he did not suffer any severe injuries on either his muscles or soft tissue. Still, the deep cut on his elbow had to be fixed surgically with ten stitches. “The elbow is probably the worst place for such an injury as I cannot move my entire arm now – which means that I cannot train on my mountain bike,” Näf explains on his injury. And after all, working out on his racing bike is a top priority when preparing for big races.