Thomas Lapeyrie Hospitalized

Feb 16, 2018
by Pinkbike Staff  
Thomas Lapeyrie finished off the 2017 Enduro World Series season with a fifth place in Finale Ligure, and had several Top-20 results throughout the season. We just recently posted a story about the Orbea Enduro Team's training camp at the end of January, and less than a week ago, the 27-year-old posted on Instagram that he was headed to Chile for the 2018 Andes Pacifico Enduro, so we were surprised and concerned when we saw this post of him in the hospital earlier today.

400 [Failed to load instagram embed] https://www.instagram.com/p/BfQ0K9cnAZX/?maxwidth=1000
We were able to get a bit more information about what happened from the French rider:

bigquotesIt happened so fast. The worst thing is that I didn’t see it coming. I was just training hard, like always, pushing my limits the most I can. That's why I love training and racing, just to see how far I can push myself. I was ready to enjoy the Andes Pacifico - new trails, meeting new people. I was excited to go there. A week before the race, I got a big headache. I checked with a doctor and then he told me to go to a specialist.

I planned the appointment with a specialist on the Monday before the Andes. When they saw me, they sent me as fast as possible to the emergency, in Santiago. My heart was really fast in a resting position and my blood pressure was dangerously high. They told me that my heart was going to stop if I continued high-level sport or if I rode at elevation during the Andes Pacifico race. I could die the doctors said. That was so terrifying because I thought I just had a headache. Then they gave me some drugs to calm my body, and I had to sleep a lot.

So now my state is okay, because I'm just resting. But it’s so scary that I was in this situation a few days ago when I was feeling good the past week.

As a rider, I’m used to crashing, having injuries, being in pain when I do sprints or 5-hour road bike rides - my body is ready for painful moments. And I have a good feeling with the pain because it’s my everyday workout! Actually, I was in a good form and didn’t recognize that it was really dangerous for my body to push too much. So now the next step for me is just to keep the smile on my face - I’m alive.

I would like to tell everybody that’s good to have a passion that gives you a big smile every day when you wake up! But the most important thing ever is your health. Just take care of yourself.
Thomas Lapeyrie

Our thoughts are with you, and we're wishing you the best for a speedy recovery Thomas!

Author Info:
pinkbikeaudience avatar

Member since Jul 22, 2013
3,460 articles

99 Comments
  • 63 0
 Prevention is always better than treatment! Glad to read these things were caught early. Best wishes through the process.
  • 32 19
 Amen to that. Eat more fruits and veggies, way less meat. Helped me a TON!
  • 19 12
 @jdsusmc: Varies between body to body.
  • 21 8
 @chillrider199: effects of smoking also vary from person to person. Is it still bad in general? Totally.
  • 28 8
 @colincolin: Meat is not a cigarette.
  • 2 0
 @colincolin: genetic is the first thing. That's the reason some babies have heath problems and they never smoke of eat meat a lot. Foods is the second and excersice is the 3°. Good luck Thom fast recovery thankfully you're better now.
  • 12 11
 @colincolin: Sorry dude on pinkbike. Ill just ignore blood type slecialists and doctors that have helped me figure out my diet. You seem to have it all known. Again, sorry.
  • 22 4
 @jdsusmc: The problem is referring to all animal protein as “meat” and saying it’s not good for you. Over processed burgers made from sick animals pumped with antibiotics accompanied with the bread bun and a sugary soda is terrible for you. An elk steak from a healthy animal that spent its life in the wild is one of the best things you can put in your body.
  • 13 22
flag colincolin (Feb 17, 2018 at 8:45) (Below Threshold)
 @FindDigRideRepeat: Tell me more about how many antioxidants, fiber and anticancer compounds are in elk flesh lol.
I know what it certainly contains... Saturated fat, cholesterol, heme iron, methionine. Not taking in consideration the lead exposure you get from wild meat because you obviously ripped the animal apart alive with your massive canines.

Me waiting for the hate bullets:
vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/dumbway2sdie/images/e/e0/Mooose.gif/revision/latest?cb=20140808215653
  • 20 5
 @colincolin: The idea that meat and cholesterol is not healthy for everyone is just plain false propaganda pushed by organizations that cherry pick data from bad studies....and these people always have an ulterior motive which isnt strictly health, it's animal rights.
  • 8 13
flag colincolin (Feb 17, 2018 at 9:09) (Below Threshold)
 @inverted180: Yeah I call BS. You really think the WHO and the American Cancer Society are pushing a vegan agenda by rating red meat as a probable carcinogen?
  • 17 3
 @colincolin: Then why aren’t the Inuit people dying off in huge numbers from all the meat related illness you claim exists? No fruit or vegetable can be grown there, yet they are extremely healthy people with little to no cancer. Sugar is the real enemy.
  • 7 1
 @colincolin: It's choosing the right amount and right sources for your protein, nothing more than that. Animals pumped with antibiotics, etc and slaughtered by the thousands daily are at the center of those studies. Especially since most "Americans" get their meat from these unethical, poisonous sources.

Grass fed, free range, game meat, IN MODERATION can be more beneficial than a fully Vegan diet. Time your meals, separate fruits and veggies from meat, dairy, etc so that you avoid rot gut and do other things to help your body digest your varying diet properly. Veganism is not the answer, it's ONE of the MANY solutions.

Don't take your Vegan guilt and swing it around, you'll find yourself hitting your self in the head eventually. There's more than one way to live a healthy life so do it your way, I'll do it mine.
  • 3 0
 @colincolin: With that said, there are plenty of professional athletes who has gone full Vegan and done so successfully due to the resources, money and discipline associated with their professions.

Respect to those who do it, just do the same for those who choose to live their healthy life differently.
  • 3 0
 @FindDigRideRepeat: Exactly. Sugar and the ridiculous prevalence in foods, eve those that shouldn't have or even need it!
  • 5 4
 @FindDigRideRepeat: Inuit have no long life expectancy at all and a raised rate of heart disease compared to healthy populations like the mediteranians. you're simply jumping on the "eskimos tho" bandwagon. www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LvGiiZyn-M

@RideTahoe707: (y)
  • 25 6
 @colincolin: Inuits are cool and they eat just meat is as stupid as there are plenty of athletes who are full vegans. Just saying... however saying eat more veggies and less meat to a guy who just had a heart attack and you have no fkng clue how much meat and veggies he eats is even dumber. Yes we heard you, you have a fantastic diet. Vegans, paleos, ketons, muslims, please understand that your mumbo jumbo is happening mainly inside your head, don’t talk about your bollocks as if it was science working for everybody, for everything. Nothing replaces education and self examination and everything you do, everything around you is changing. So if you suddenly joined a club and you think you’re good for life, you’re f*cked up.

Which athletes in what sports, what are their results? How does their day look like? How do they compensate? What are the chances I can get on their diet without flipping my life upside down. Because a pro athlete has way more time to train a wank over his nutrition than Most people do.

Dude here surely had some particular issue. If you push your body too hard then in majority of cases you over train and get slower than you were. I hope they figure out what’s his problem and he can get back on his bike. All the best.
  • 1 0
 @colincolin: really, you have not researched this topic honestly. It is not settled science (ie. Link between cancer and meat) and the fact that meat is nutritious is undeniable.

From WHO (doesnt sound like they are pushimg vegan??)

16. Should I stop eating meat?
Eating meat has known health benefits. Many national health recommendations advise people to limit intake of processed meat and red meat, which are linked to increased risks of death from heart disease, diabetes, and other illnesses.
www.who.int/features/qa/cancer-red-meat/en
  • 3 0
 @colincolin:

From WHO
"
7. Red meat was classified as Group 2A, probably carcinogenic to humans. What does this mean exactly?
In the case of red meat, the classification is based on limited evidence from epidemiological studies showing positive associations between eating red meat and developing colorectal cancer as well as strong mechanistic evidence.

Limited evidence means that a positive association has been observed between exposure to the agent and cancer but that other explanations for the observations (technically termed chance, bias, or confounding) could not be ruled out."

Repeat after me. Correlation does nkt equal causation. These studies can not conclusive prove it increases risk because they never account for other factors. Plus in terms of the stronger evidence of increased risk with processed meat (lunch meat, hot dogs bolanga etc) the increase is still pretty negligible.
  • 2 2
 Don't drink alcohol - biggest problem out there with regards to messing you up - in verrrrry small doses beer can help your heart as studies have shown but damn beer makes you bloated and creates excess gases in the body - light smoking is better for you than any touch of the liquor...
  • 2 0
 @Therealbikehub: ouch....raining on the ever present PB beer and bikes theme
  • 6 2
 ok, so what do you guys think fkd up Kelly McGarry? I mean don’t call me heartless, here you have the guy that merely survived and you tell him not to drink alcohol, to get vegan, what else did he do wrong? At least Kelly can’t read this bullsht.

@inverted180 I can see @colincolin go around onkology unit in his town and tell everyone that it’s their fault cuz they were eating red meat... There was a woman at my work who survived thyroid cancer, she started reading after she got home from chemo and then she started talking to us what food and clothing gives us cancer. It was unbearable... if anyone felt pity for her in the beginning, after few months we were wishing her the worst. Every fkng lunch with her was dissection of how terrible is what we eat
  • 1 0
 @WAKIdesigns: beautifully and succintly put. Amen
  • 1 0
 @WAKIdesigns: why the f*ck is my phone making numerous replies. Making me look like a tool. :-(
  • 1 0
 @colincolin: "The arrival of modern diet (as he said 'twinkies') actually seems to improved their health" ---bit of a paraphrase from that Youtube vid....but in Canada, it's more complicated. Maybe he should research why there are daily flights from the Arctic to Winnipeg to put folks on dialysis machines?
  • 1 1
 @colincolin: When someone puts a youtube link as some form of 'evidence' regarding serious matters you kind of know that that person hasn't done any real research at all.
  • 8 0
 Too many doctors here! Keep your poor advices for your family and friends! Thomas needs positive attitude and encouragment not your shitty talks about meat etc...
  • 2 1
 @WAKIdesigns: on point dude.
  • 4 1
 @Kickmehard: I'm on keyboard warrior diet... high ethical, high in antioxidants, you arse doesn't get itchy when on a plane and you never feel like you need to fart when on the gym. There is nothing worse than squatting 250lbs and trying to keep your butt cheeks closed at the same time.
  • 1 0
 @WAKIdesigns: I try to keep my irony levels up to fend off comment section anemia.
  • 1 0
 @Carloso: we have an educated man right here.
  • 1 0
 @inverted180: and another educated man.
  • 1 0
 @FindDigRideRepeat: There are no antibiotics in meat sold from the US. At least not sold in a grocery store. There are very specific withdrawal periods that prevent an animal from being slaughtered within the period of time in which any drug would be residual in their tissues. USDA FSIS inspects routinely checks for violations and the consequences are severe enough that it's rare for producers to try to cheat.
  • 2 0
 @gilby82: How about growth hormones? And are cows still fed cardboard in the States?
  • 2 1
 @colincolin: You know cholesterol is good for you right? You know that about 7 scientists were paid off to lie about there findings on sugar and how it interacts with cholesterol and saturated fats by the sugar industry and since then the entire world has gone on believing cholesterol and saturated fats are the cause of all these health problems. Only when you combine them with a high sugar diet does it have a detrimental effect. Cholesterol is the building blocks for testosterone and estrogen. Fat is good for you as well. It's called eat in moderation and some proper excercise. If cholesterol is bad why have eggs been labeled as a net zero food source ? Cause f*cking cholesterol is good for us and absolutely needed in our diets. As well when you look at the deaths from heart disease from the time of this study till now there has been an increase in deaths even as people consume less of these so called evil substances. There's enough good science out there disproving alot of what we've been told is truth. Dig deeper to find the truth.
  • 4 1
 @MikeGruhler: once you are a vegan or environmentalist and somebody tells you to dig deeper to find the truth, your head explodes...
  • 3 1
 @WAKIdesigns: Sweet! one less vegan to deal with then.
  • 2 0
 @MikeGruhler: In many ways I like them, the more the better.
  • 3 0
 @MikeGruhler: there is always the environmental angle. Strong arguments for us all to be eating veggies and cricket protien.

Meh soon they will be able to grow animal protein (meat) in a lab and we we can stop talking about the animal cruelty aspect.
  • 2 0
 @FindDigRideRepeat: Please tell us more about your wealth of knowledge of the Inuit.... Because you are misinformed, Inuit have a lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality rate, are 4x more likely to have elevated blood pressure.... 41% of Inuit experience food insecurity (some studies suggest the number is as high as 80%), comparative to 8% of non inuit canadians.... they have the highest incidence of liver and lung cancer in the country, and cancers are the second leading cause of death (secondary to injury).
  • 2 1
 Didn't realize we had so many inuit experts on Pb...oh wait...
  • 1 0
 @cmcrawfo: world is full of a*sholes who say “I’m on X diet and never looked back, my results speak for themselves” same goes for tyres, drivetrains, wheelsizes, suspension. No person who just tries something behaves this way, it’s the people who commit to something who must signal how great is what they are doing. Like me with hard gears and bashing Eagle Wink I guess everyone’s guilty of it.
  • 1 1
 It was a pleasure triggering you all Smile
  • 2 0
 @colincolin: #gottrolled ?
  • 1 0
 @R-trailking-S: I think I have found the token Vegetarians
  • 1 0
 Pick a food preference and be a dick about it.
  • 1 0
 @Clarkeh: Pick an animal and slit its throat. Pet the other animal that's just as intelligent. Then downvote this comment because you're a hypocrate.

Hey being a dick is fun! I like it.
  • 2 0
 @colincolin: welcome to the club. Where should we send the "I like to watch the world burn while I play on a cello" T-shirt?
  • 1 1
 @WAKIdesigns: In case your local middle school for visually impaired children has an orchestra send it to them. Would love to see some overly politically correct parents get mad.
  • 2 0
 @colincolin: Yes we're all murderers with blood on our hands... zzz... haven't tried cat or dog, but if the situation was dire enough I'd give it a go.
  • 1 0
 @Clarkeh: Thing is, we are at the same level of the food chain as medium/large carnivores, possibly below. If we start having to eat them we're f*cked. Herbivores are hardwired to expect to be eaten at some point, it is their point of stability.
Just a theory, don't know if I believe it.
  • 18 0
 Wishing you the best Thomas. I am glad it was caught and you listened to the doctors before something bad happened. Hopefully it can be diagnosed and treated so you can return for riding.

For all the comments about it being related to 1) diet, or 2) drugs. Shame on you. Shame on you for making assumptions. Shame on you for claiming to have the answer with very limited facts. Shame on you for deciding that you know better than highly trained and educated specialists. No doctor in the world would ever jump to conclusions like this without having all the possible information they could in hand.
  • 4 0
 Hope your resting up well and on the way to being back on the bike. I just recently was told I had severe blood clotting resulting most likely from an operation in Nov. and I got told the same thing. Basically need to rest and avoid altitudes.
  • 3 0
 Get well soon, all the best. These things can hit you when you least expect. Stay strong and hope you can keep your spirits up whilst you recover. It can be hard to take it easy when you're used to getting out biking all the time.
  • 2 0
 Speedy recovery Thomas. Pb and client companies like obea and yt should consider running an article on why athletes, not to mentioned those at the top of the sport suffers from heart related complication when all they basically do is exercise exercise and exercise which should be extremely health and how to prevent them.
  • 3 0
 There is plenty of information on the internet about these kinds of issues, its something that affects a lot of the running community.
  • 4 1
 @AlexS1: Too much of a good thing is bad for you. Reading the response I got the impression Lapeyrie was burning the candles at both ends, training intensely without sufficient recovery afterwards. I don't have the details of his particular case but I do know that kind of regime can easily lead to overtraining, which can in rare cases can present with similar symptoms to those above. Hopefully it's nothing too serious, he learns from the experience and comes back even stronger.
  • 2 0
 @Deuce-DeuceAndAHalf: if the case was solely: “he was training so hard”, he’d simply overtrain and his results would start stagnating, he’d get weak and depressed, so he’d definitely readjust his training and recovery. Anyone who overtrained knows how big loss in performance it can be, its like trying to ride while having a flu. So his state Is surely more than training a lot. I hope he heals well.
  • 2 0
 Thomas experienced an almost the end experience. I doubt this had something to do with whatever some suggest. However when pushing your body to the edge, there is always a risk you will cross that edge. Be careful, listen to your body. Live to ride, ride to live.
  • 2 0
 Very special words, thank you. I wish you the best Thomas. We all share a very special passion & the support we all give each other is amazing. Stay strong, look forward to seeing you on the dirt again soon!
  • 1 0
 Best of luck on getting back on the bike asap! Take it easy and listen to the doctors!
About all that absurd conversation about the diet that started in the comment section... please...
first principle of toxicology: everything is toxic, it just depends on the dosage. And most things are good in part and bad in part..so please stop coming out with perfect truths about single aliments!
  • 4 0
 Sounds like you dodged a bullet my man! Glad you’re okay!
  • 1 1
 legit question....

What are the chances this can happen to a person who is only consuming proper food but has a ridiculous training regiment as opposed to someone who is on an improper cocktail of supplements (legal or illegal)?
  • 5 0
 Athletic sudden death syndrome is a thing, its not unheard of that young super fit athletes randomly die. Hard to predict without in-depth testing. Basically genetically gifted athletes can get hearts that are too large which can cause a variety of heart pathology and death. Illicict drugs can certainly lead to heart pathology, but I am unsure as to the details.
  • 2 0
 @smuggly: It's weird to think having a big heart can be a bad thing, especially for those of who are not particular gifted athletes. I've always struggled with endurance, even when I was in the best shape of my life, meanwhile my wife can run miles without even training. Genetics, man.
  • 2 0
 @PHeller: People i who experience and ultimately die from heart failure can have excessively large hearts as they adapt / enlarge (hypertrophy) in an uncontrolled manner, to adapt to excess blood pressure and volume. Very similar to what happens in some athletes.

From a long term heart health perspective, professional sport is perhaps not the healthiest thing to do for your heart and the rest of you body. Being fit and healthy in a recreational sense and not 'redlining' your heart in every training session is great for long term health. You just wont ever win anything, I prefer strength and power myself... thats what I tell myself at least as endurance fit folk ride off on me Smile
  • 3 0
 unqualified guess: sinus vein thrombosis provoked by heavy training at high altitude
  • 3 0
 Damn man heart stuff is freaky. I’ve had a bit of that myself. Heal well!
  • 2 0
 So what was the cause or what exactly was the problem? We got symptoms but no diagnosis?
  • 11 41
flag YungSketchy (Feb 16, 2018 at 19:21) (Below Threshold)
 Steroids probably
  • 10 1
 Performance drugs in cycling!!
(Gasps)
Surely not!!
  • 4 0
 It's really hot there in combination with high altitude. That's a hard task for a human body, perhaps coming from European winter, pong exhausting flight and pushing hard in training.
No wonder if one collapses due to this kind of stress.

If supplements played a role? Not necessarily in my opinion.
  • 2 0
 *long exhausting flight
Smile
  • 2 0
 Could be as simple as overtraining
  • 2 0
 Thomas, good luck with the recovery, hope it’s not to long until you can get back on your bike.
  • 4 0
 heal up soon buddy!
  • 5 1
 To much red bull
  • 3 0
 Yes you can get a racing heart from too much RB. Might have been stress as well.
  • 3 0
 Red bull give you wings...... to the hell lol
  • 1 0
 A friend of mine had to have his heart stopped and restarted as he drunk too much coffee once and gave him a serious arrhythmia.
  • 3 1
 I'd rather drink two Red Bulls in a row than one Monster. That sht makes my eyebalsl pop out and I drink at least 300mg of coffee a day
  • 3 0
 All the best for you Thomas. Hope to see you some time again on Reunion Smile
  • 3 1
 Hope you'll heal up and be back on the podium! All the best!
  • 3 1
 Hang in there and get well! The EWS needs you!!!
  • 2 0
 good it has been found in time, not in the middle of Ands
  • 2 0
 Too many 'energy' drinks? Get better soon!
  • 1 0
 Humans are designed to eat vegetable and meat.....and potato chips. Everyone get over themselves.
  • 1 0
 sounds like ur getting old bud
  • 1 0
 Sounds like HACE
  • 1 1
 I want veal now....
  • 2 3
 I'll say it once: PROTEIN DRINKS CAUSE HEART PROBLEMS
  • 1 1
 Being stupid causes even more deaths than protein drinks...
  • 3 0
 @WAKIdesigns: especially in miscalculating structural statics of architecture. ---- but did WTC7 really collapse from the vibrations caused be the big towers falling!?? **illuminati confirmed music playing**
  • 4 0
 @colincolin: 4G signals in phones cause infertility and heart attacks while wifi routers are cooking your brain at night.
  • 1 0
 @WAKIdesigns: The most cancerous thing known to mankind is the pinkbike comment section. But that's why we love it so much.
  • 3 0
 @colincolin: nah! If it were so I'd be dead. For the most part it makes me laugh and smile, and these are some of the best anti-canceranous branched mono-gluticongens found in nature
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