Rowe’s Stunning Comeback From Injury Rewarded With Tour de France Spot

Luke Rowe will complete his incredible comeback from a career-threatening injury when he lines up at the Tour de France start on Saturday.

The Cardiff-born rider was warned he could be out for at least a year when he shattered his right leg in 20 places in a freak accident last August.

Rowe broke his tibia and fibula jumping onto a rock while out white-water rafting in Prague on brother, Matt’s, stag-do.

The Team Sky rider was on crutches when his brother married 2012 Olympic track champ Dani King, who now races for Wales.

But after months of gruelling rehabilitation Rowe returned to racing at the Abu Dhabi Tour last February.

And on Saturday, he will be on the start line at Noirmoutier-en-L’Ile for the opening stage of this year’s Tour.

Team Sky boss Dave Brailsford paid tribute to Rowe when the team confirmed their eight-strong line-up on Tuesday.

The Welshman said: “It is also fantastic that Luke Rowe will be riding the Tour again as our road captain after his serious accident last summer. It is testament to his ability and determination that he has come back so strongly.”

Rowe, regarded as Sky’s captain on the road, has been an ever-present helping Chris Froome win the last three of his four Yellow Jerseys.

This time he will be helping Froome and fellow Welshman Geraint Thomas who will have protected rider status.

Luke Rowe working on his recovery in gym last year. Pic: Team Sky

Rowe, 28, was determined to get back racing despite warnings of the repercussions of a crash.

And, in gruesome detail, he recalled the incident in the Czech Republic last year.

“I knew straight away how serious it was, it was excruciating pain and there are quite a few broken bones,” said Rowe in an interview with BBC Wales.

“It was a case of trying to get out of the water as quickly as possible and into an ambulance.

“I’ve broken a fair few bones in my career but this was significantly worse than any of them. It was double the pain – add the pain of a few broken bones together.

“I lifted my leg, but my foot stayed still, it was kind of hanging off, limp. The bone didn’t break the skin, but it is pretty scary when you look down and see that when you are on the side of a riverbank.

“It was a freak accident but it was a mistake. The water clearly wasn’t deep enough to jump into, but hindsight is a beautiful thing. Other people were jumping with no problems, but I hit a rock.

“I knew straight away the implications of what I had done and how long it would take to come back.”

The road back has been long and hard at times, but will be complete on Saturday.