“Es fielen um mich herum nur noch Leute.” People were simply dropping all around him, said Florian Hollander, who rode through the pile-up on Sunday, September 7, 2025, without falling. His rear tyre went flat, and that ended his race. For many others at the RiderMan amateur cycling event in Bad Dürrheim, Baden-Württemberg, the damage was far worse.
Police said up to 100 riders were hurt. Thirty were seriously injured, though none of them in a life-threatening condition. Up to 25 more with light injuries were treated at the scene or taken to clinics. As the evening went on, further riders came forward, and in the end police counted around 70 people with light injuries. They would not give a final figure that afternoon. Early reports from dpa had put the toll lower, at about 70 injured, with up to 20 seriously hurt.
Two pile-ups on the same road
It happened on the stretch between Bad Dürrheim and Biesingen. Too many riders entered a tight left-hand bend at the same moment, police said, and a large group went down onto the road together. The field then bunched up again a little further on, and more riders fell.
The organiser’s video shows cyclists toppling like dominoes beneath a motorway bridge. Race director Rik Sauser said the riders were doing about 70 kilometres an hour on a gentle descent. Someone had told him about a burst tyre, he said, but nothing confirmed that. Police ruled out outside interference. Hollander’s own account was plain: someone braked, a front wheel overlapped, and that was enough.
Rescue and aftermath
Regional rescue services raised a major alert. Four rescue helicopters and a large number of ambulances went to the scene, and the injured were taken to hospitals in the area. The organiser stopped the whole event, which had more than 1,200 participants, and called off all remaining races.
RiderMan is a three-day event for amateurs, made up of a time trial and two road races. This was its 25th edition. According to the organiser, nothing comparable had happened “in der gesamten Geschichte des Riderman bisher noch nie”, in the race’s entire history. The risk of falling is part of cycling, the organisers added, and cannot be removed completely despite every precaution.
Sources
- Massensturz bei RiderMan Radrennen: Etwa 100 verletzte Sportler (SWR Aktuell)
- "Riderman": Großeinsatz – 70 Verletzte nach Massensturz bei Radrennen (WELT / dpa)
