Update: Flo Payet Posts Video of the Moment a Course Pole Struck his Genitals and Took him Out of the Leogang World Cup

Jun 11, 2021 at 4:01
by James Smurthwaite  

Florent Payet has posted a video of the moment a course pole struck him in the genitals forcing him out of the Leogang World Cup.

Payet was being followed by Brendan Fairclough who captured the moment on camera and the French racer shared it this morning.

For the full story on what happened see below but for now watch the video and prepare to wince.

bigquotesDid not race finals today but win the worst story of the year. No words needed.—Florent Payet


Original Story


In an incident that can only be described as the absolute worst-case scenario, Florent Payet will not be racing in the Leogang World Cup after a course marking pole struck his genitals. The incident happened yesterday in training and the French rider had to be rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery.

Flo didn't even crash and riders hitting poles on the course is a regular occurrence but it sounds like he got incredibly unlucky as this one flicked back at just the wrong angle and did some serious damage to his undercarriage. Payet was apparently very close to losing his ability to have children but an emergency surgery has apparently put everything back where it needs to be.

The story is pretty wild so we'll let Payet tell it himself:

bigquotesHey everyone, just a quick update on what happened to me today.

Everything was coming together nicely, I was really happy with the track and was enjoying riding the steep mud sections. Then the drama came.

I went out of the track on a fast section about 30 seconds into the track. I was trying find some more speed somewhere else than in the wood and simply rode into a pole. I had probably done this a thousand times in the last 16 years that I have been racing World Cups. Normally I just bounce off and keep going.

This time it was a bit different. The pole came back and whipped straight between my legs. It hit me with an unbelievable amount of pain. I still managed to ride my bike quite well down to the bottom of the track, but when I got to the pit the pain got really bad. We had a check down my trousers and there was lots of blood and some spare parts were hanging out that should have been tucked away safely. I needed to get to a hospital urgently.

The doctors performed emergency surgery to save them and get them back in place and to save the chance to have children… The surgery was a success and the boys are back where they should be.

I will need to wait and see what this experience has actually done to me emotionally as I was very close to losing them… This is the first time I have needed surgery without actually crashing on my bike and it has been a scary experience.

I will keep the updates coming regarding my situation over the next few days, and let everyone know about my recovery when I have more information.—Florent Payet

Flo has since updated us on the situation and says he expects to be out of the hospital tomorrow but the road to recovery will take a bit longer. At the moment he is hoping to be back for Maribor but will definitely be missing Les Gets and Hardline. He said, "The only way to recover well is to set up my mindset to a new goal and try to stay as fit as I can. 2021 will be a hard one but I am the kind of man who can do well with almost nothing. Let's trust myself and write a new story of my career."

We're wishing Flo the best of luck in his recovery and hope to see him back on the bike soon. We will update you on his condition as it progresses.

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226 Comments

  • 307 4
 Poley shit! Reading that definitely made me wince. Glad Flo and the lads are right.
  • 83 3
 Sometimes when you cut the course, the course cuts back! Glad he'll recover. I've never read such a traumatizing headline.
  • 54 2
 As a fellow rider who had a sack torn open while riding, I feel ya Payet. Don't worry though, the scar will be well hidden.
  • 49 1
 Separation anxiety... Eek
  • 32 1
 My dudads hurt just reading about this.
  • 28 1
 NUTS!!
  • 48 3
 God knows how this hasn’t accident happened before to Danny with the sizes of his balls
  • 25 1
 That section is Balls out!
  • 20 0
 POC et al will come out with an impact gel cup because of this
  • 11 1
 11 years ago Juan Morelap has this exact experience at Snowshoe on the World Cup course. Only it was caught on video!!
m.youtube.com/watch?v=EPECEUpLf04
  • 1 2
 Healing vibes to Flo Payet! Feel bad for him, because now he knows how @blowmybutch feels on a daily basis.
  • 11 0
 @kcy4130: I liked the MBR headline better!

"Horror genitals injury at Leogang: “some spare parts were hanging out”"

- www.mbr.co.uk/news/horror-pole-injury-at-leogang-407785
  • 8 0
 Not the best way to celebrate fathers day on sunday
  • 1 0
 @mattvanders: comment of the year Sir.
  • 2 0
 Press X to pay your respects.
  • 2 1
 @bsarfino: this is pure gold.
  • 1 1
 this can be a pornhub parody
  • 1 0
 @scott-townes: maybe
  • 2 0
 Singing after the surgery is over... "The boys are back in town, boys are back in tooowwwn!"
  • 1 0
 @bmar: Better than singing soprano.....
  • 1 0
 @jrocksdh:
Course organizers have to rename that section of track!
  • 1 0
 @dlford: Nutsack Corner
  • 159 2
 This why Yoann always carries a spare
  • 5 1
 Better carry this one:

www.amazon.com/dp/B00Q0EMNHS
  • 2 1
 lol
  • 2 0
 M E G A N U T
  • 115 0
 No single injury brings men more together than seeing a fellow man take one to the jewels! Cheers to mini-Florians riding WC's 20 years from now!
  • 8 0
 *mini-Flos... Damn autocorrect
  • 21 0
 @Spark24: midichlorians?
  • 2 0
 @number44: first thing I thought when I read it over!
  • 10 1
 As long as they're not mini Floridians everything should be fine
  • 1 0
 Have you seen the size of that guy? Most things are 'mini' compared to him.
  • 78 0
 AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
  • 77 2
 That accident was nuts! Get well soon.
  • 126 1
 Balls out racing. Literally.
  • 5 6
 @nozes: You sir win the internet today
  • 32 0
 Some of these comments are low hanging fruit.
  • 8 0
 @letsgoridebikes18: plum choice
  • 2 0
 At least, it sounds like they had a quick response and he didn’t have to hang out too long on the course.
  • 58 2
 Second hardest man in sport, after this guy:

Wayne Shelford was caught at the bottom of a ruck 20 minutes into the game, losing four teeth, and sustained a large tear to his scrotum courtesy of a stray French boot.

Incredibly, Shelford had his injury stitched on the sideline and played on until deep into the second half, when a knock to the head left him concussed and unable to continue.
  • 13 8
 Pfffft weak man couldn't keep going after a conky, why are we talking about him?
  • 8 0
 Bring back Buck. The man was a legend.
  • 3 1
 Well... Third hardest I'd say.
thesefootballtimes.co/2019/07/22/oscar-de-marcos-and-the-torn-scrotum

"Including the three minutes of stoppage time, De Marcos played 66 minutes with a torn scrotum that rainy Saturday night – but it was all worth it as the team secured a 2-1 victory to take three points."
  • 4 0
 True story! A friend of mine called Buck a "pussy" to his face, having literally zero idea who he was. We were about 16 at the time. I can confirm my friend knows full well who he is now and no longer thinks he is a pussy.
  • 2 0
 @lhodgson: How many Kentucky Golds did he consume before doing that!? I had a similar experience with George Gregan at Carisbrook in about 97. Verbal abuse followed by a swift apology
  • 47 0
 If it was Danny Hart a priest would be giving the pole its last rites. Ouch get well soon Florent!!
  • 43 0
 This freaks me out, like the really bad crash of Cedric Gracia at the megavalanche La Réunion
  • 11 1
 Scariest thing I've seen on video, just after the train gap fail where the dude almost falls on the rails
  • 8 0
 This still plays in my head sometimes, especially when hauling down a fairly innocuous sunny trail... *shudders*
  • 18 0
 The crash of Cedric freaks me out way more because he was very close to death. If the friends didn't put all their weight on Cedric's vein, he would have bled to death. Way worse if you ask me. This crash here is horrific nevertheless
  • 5 0
 That video certainly led to me upgrading my first aid kit - trauma bandage with pressure bar and quick clot are now always with me...
  • 1 0
 @BunnyR10: wait which train gap vid..? post a link?
  • 3 0
 @steezysam: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeoMfuuUSBs
Here ya go bud, prepare for the adrenaline rush
  • 3 0
 Or the CG one where he spears his femoral artery with a brake lever and nearly bleeds to death at the trail side! It was on a flat, easy section of a trail, too.
  • 1 0
 @BunnyR10: daaaamn that's wild
  • 2 0
 @mountainsofsussex: That'll be joining my kit ASAP... I get the heebie jeebies just thinking about how unprepared I am at all times. A friend took a fall in some cactus in a sidecountry hike last week and I was the only one with any sort of medkit. We patched him up and got him back to civilization, but it so easily could have been a broken collarbone or serious bleeding.

I take so much for granted living in a city. The only injuries I've had were broken arms, but if they hadn't happened within 15 minutes of professional medical care I would have struggled to do anything other than splint them, sling them and stumble back to cell service.
  • 2 0
 @mountainsofsussex my dad keeps quick clot in the car whenever we go anywhere
  • 3 1
 @getsendywithit: of course the best equipment is the lightest - training...
  • 24 0
 Pole Bikes Marketing Team

*hides
  • 8 0
 Testes testes 123
  • 21 0
 Ya know, every once in a while I'm glad I was born female.
  • 20 0
 Brendog: He got a pole in the dick

I'm sorry, but that made me burst out laughing.

Get well soon, Flo!
  • 1 0
 I feel bad about laughing at what Bren said after reading surgery required because spare parts were hanging out.
  • 17 0
 Doctor: You lost your what?
Payet: Correct.
Doctor: We can fix that. What size was it?
  • 7 0
 xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxl, judging by how good these racers are
  • 18 1
 He did nut see that coming!
  • 2 0
 Nut really a common collision.
  • 15 0
 Wait. Are you telling me that this guy nearly got evirated and, instead of vomiting and passing out, like everyone in his own mind, DROVE HIS BIKE TO THE BOTTOM?
  • 6 6
 cocains a helluva drug
  • 2 0
 Yes and even try few lines pushing my bike in the wood. ‍♂️
  • 16 0
 Misunderstanding leads to police seeking a coarse Polishman.
  • 4 1
 I laughed twice. Once because of the pun, and once because of all the guys from Poland I've ever met, putting the words "coarse" and "Polishman" together is redundant. lol
  • 16 1
 Seems like a reasonable reason fo sit this one out.
  • 38 2
 doubt he'll be sitting anywhere for a while
  • 9 0
 I don't think sitting is an option . . . .
  • 6 2
 I dont think he will be rubbing one out soon either.
  • 1 1
 Get him one of those comfy donuts to sit on and he‘ll be allright
  • 13 0
 Holy smokes. So glad this incident turned out well in the end... Wish you a speedy recovery, phisically and mentally!
  • 9 0
 Not quite the seeded run you were planning. Glad all ok. Straight to comments for this one!
  • 8 0
 Leatt will now be marketing the Nutsacker 1.0
  • 6 0
 Well, @jamessmurthwaite, full point for Abruptness of Headline. Literally should not be the first thing you read when you wake up. Consider me discombobulated.
  • 8 1
 Get a zipper installed where the stitches are. You can hide your weed in there.
  • 7 0
 That's the problem with the size of those balls...
  • 3 0
 "some spare parts were hanging out that should have been tucked away safely... The doctors performed emergency surgery to save them and get them back in place and to save the chance to have children… The surgery was a success and the boys are back where they should be."

Holy heck... I'm in pain just reading that. Rest up Flo!
  • 7 1
 Just imagine if that happened to Danny Hart!
  • 17 0
 The pole would need surgery.
  • 3 0
 @ullsen: If he wore a chain mail chamois he would have been unscathed....
  • 1 0
 @ullsen: made my day. that was a good one definitely
  • 5 0
 I feel very involved, putted him into my fantasy team yesterday morning, sorry Flo, get well soon
  • 1 0
 I'm glad I'm not on the roster.
  • 6 0
 "He got a pole in the dick"

Classic quote
  • 6 0
 Holy balls!
  • 8 3
 I'm just here for the puns.
  • 5 2
 You got nuttin’?
  • 4 0
 The Dick Pound meme will never be more relevant. Commiseration to the boys, Florent.
  • 5 0
 "More nuts does not equal more power, trust me" - Lance Armstrong
  • 4 0
 I almost fainted due to the amount of air I sucked in through clenched teeth reading this... hope he gets better soon!
  • 4 0
 A pole in the genitals is not desirable. That what my wife tells me every night before bed !
  • 2 0
 I remember a call case about 12 years ago and there was this dude who had a chunk of his penis bit off by hooker. I don't remember the details on why she took a bite but it was gnarly.
  • 1 0
 Ohhhhfff. Properly feel for him, glad it worked out in the end. Heal up strong dude!

I once hit a hole with the front wheel and bike stopped dead. On the way over the bars my forks rebounded and my bellend got slammed between my pubic bone and my stem.

Got home and was tentatively investigating the damage. My Mrs helpfully announced "You've got a trouser snake bite!"
  • 1 0
 I haven't laughed so hard when Brendog said to his fellow rider "He got a pole in his dick"
I mean it sucks for Flo and I know how serious his injury was as he had to have emergency surgery but I am happy and glad he is going to make a complete recovery and still have a shot at kids in his future!

but damn, I couldn't stop laughing when I heard Brendan say that...I feel horrible.
  • 1 0
 Poled in the dick, this is new for me. you learn something every day. I got a lil too far back the other day and gave the boys a bit of a buzz on the tire. It was rough, but I didn't have to to withdraw from the ride, just had to tolerate the smell of burning hair.
  • 4 0
 Ouch. Get well soon, man.
  • 3 0
 Equally as terrifying, you should Google “Rally driver degloves testicles” for a horrifying read.
  • 4 0
 No thanks, I'm quite terrified enough...
  • 3 0
 I had to stop reading after "some spare parts were hanging out that should have been tucked away safely."
  • 3 0
 “The boys are back in the barracks!” jokes aside that sounds unbelievably painful! Heal up soon!
  • 3 0
 Skiers (who’ve races slalom) around the world are still trying to work out how on Earth this happened!
  • 3 0
 "He got pole in the d..k"
Other rider casually checks his front tyre pressue.
  • 1 0
 If the male anatomy was a cycling product, there would have been a massive recall long ago to address the "possible catastrophic failure due to exposed testicles" vulnerability in the design.
  • 3 0
 Brendog saying he got a pole to the dick might be the funniest thing ever said.
  • 3 0
 "How can he ride with balls like this?"
  • 2 1
 God damn! I thought I had bad luck. Take the summer off brah! Next 6 months should be strictly BJs. Not much of a life with no twig n berries...
  • 2 0
 Hey Florent, what's that bleeding all over your bike?

Florent: bit.ly/3pFNw24
  • 2 0
 Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols.... never seemed so apt...heal quick Flo..
  • 2 0
 I thought Pole's usually broke. Guess this must have been a redesigned version
  • 3 0
 I'd sack it off after an accident like that
  • 4 0
 Thats nuts
  • 1 0
 In good portuguese, the best comment would be
"FODA-SSSEEEE... CAARAAAALHOOO!!!!"

Best to "yours", and hope it was only a big scary thing!
Heal fast and well
  • 2 0
 "Oh, the Frenchman... Oh, monsiiieuurrr!"

www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEM3wy8sdBg
  • 2 0
 After hearing French man, and balls sniped by a pole I immediately thought of Yannick.
  • 3 0
 #nadsgotrobbed

Heal up!!
  • 1 0
 You’d think Danny Hart would be doing this all the time cause he’s got such a big target. Maybe he’d actually just do more damage to the pole than it would to him
  • 3 0
 What is it with Poles and things breaking?
  • 3 0
 THE BOYS ARE BACK IN TOWN
  • 1 0
 "Pole'd in the d*ck" is from now on my greatest fear and favourite threat.

"Final warning. Touch my bacon and you're getting pole'd in the d*ck!"
  • 4 2
 I desperately try to make up a pun, but I really am at a loss for...words
  • 3 0
 Oh, bollocks.
  • 2 0
 This is every lads worst nightmare!
  • 3 0
 That's nuts
  • 2 0
 You just can't script this stuff... Get well soon!!
  • 2 0
 What an article headline to read on a Friday morning
  • 3 0
 damn Poles...
  • 3 0
 Healing vibes dude.
  • 1 1
 Hey PinkBike, I think you have the title of this backwards. Shouldn't it read "after his genitals struck a course pole"? I suppose it's all relative.
  • 2 0
 Sorry I picked you for my team…my fault.
  • 2 0
 I get the same thing, when I pick someone on my team they break something. Sorry Kate Courtney, didn't mean to jinx you.
  • 3 1
 Well... that line didn't Payet off
  • 2 0
 I predict significantly less "French Lines" being taken this weekend!
  • 2 0
 must have been going balls out
  • 1 0
 Some of those ruts looked balls deep!!
  • 1 0
 That's some serious commitment to get that TUE for testosterone injections. Just kidding. I hope you get well soon Flo.
  • 1 0
 Too bad, sounds like he was riding... balls out. In all seriousness, heal up quick!
  • 1 0
 Good thing this didnt happen to Danny hart he would have probably snapped the pole.
  • 3 0
 Balls out
  • 2 0
 Now that’s riding “balls out”
  • 1 0
 yup yup , second hand trouse pain is still real.. reading this made me so unconfortable ! safe recovery !
  • 2 0
 Annnd now I am never not wearing a super-tight chamois
  • 2 0
 Two more reasons to avoid the French line.
  • 2 0
 Dick Pound - it a name, it shouldn't be a goal.
  • 3 0
 Dick Pound
  • 3 0
 Pole position secured
  • 1 0
 I did not know that stationary objects could be so aggressive. Someone should fire that pole from the WC circuit.
  • 1 0
 So sorry to hear that what could have been just a bummer turned into a Piñata.

Get well soon!
  • 2 0
 No more boner airs for him
  • 1 0
 Yikes, what are they using for poles, castration sticks? Healing vibes to Florent!
  • 3 0
 First time Pole won
  • 2 0
 WTF.... hopefully everything is still there. Good luck!
  • 2 0
 I think I just experienced an sympathetic testicular contraction.
  • 2 0
 "put everything back where it needs to be" Jesus, where did it go?!
  • 2 0
 a friend of mine had his scrotum sliced open when he clashed with another surfer who had dropped in on him. The fin of the surf board connected his crotch and sliced his scrotum. HE just had a dull pain but noticed blood on his board so he exited the water ASAP. When he removed his wetsuit the testicle unravelled and we had to gather it up and put it all in a plastic bag so he could hold it while we rushed him to hospital. Emergency surgery also saved his future. He had three girls with his wife over the next 8 years! I suspect it similar for Flo
  • 1 0
 @golefty: Holy f*ck...I might actually consider using some sort of nut protection if i have to read more of those stories. Good thing is, that there is no way I would not pass out right away when i see my balls dangling outside of their bag...
  • 1 0
 @golefty: For all I've done a fair bit of surfing and encountered fin strikes, I wasn't ready for the plastic bag of bollock!
  • 1 0
 @starkle: lol neither was I but my pal was in nutter shock as it unravelled down his leg. He'd pass out every time he looked down. Now picture the scene at the ER. About six blokes rushing into the hospital parkinglot in Toyota hilux with the patient passed out on the surf board at the back. Then rushing board and patient through emergency entrance commando style. Took the ER staff a few minutes to digest what was going on. Even the ER doc recoiled when he saw the injury. The nurses were superb though and I reckon their quick decisive and experienced actions saved his nut(s) . Those plastic ziploc bags are always in the cubby now. One never knows when they will be needed. Good for keeping car keys dry and safe during a long day out on the bike too
  • 2 0
 Gives a new meaning to the World Cup.
  • 2 0
 Another reason not to ride a Pole.
  • 2 0
 @pinkbike

Quite the ballsy headline.
  • 2 0
 Insert your own Dick Pound joke here!
  • 2 0
 In light of this I'm buying an extra knee pad for my third leg
  • 1 0
 Pro riders are now all calling their protection sponsors to produce some chamois with cups.
  • 2 0
 Video presents a better title “pole in the dick”
  • 1 0
 What's worse? This, or getting your nuts buzzed by a fresh mud spike when you get a little too far off the back of the bike?
  • 1 0
 Not funny. I know its a freak accident but surely these poles should be engineered so that this sort of thing can't happen.
  • 1 0
 Headline straight from The Sun.
  • 1 0
 You'll never beat zip me up before you go go
  • 1 0
 Missing the capital letters, but it's almost there.
  • 2 0
 here for the comments...
  • 1 0
 Accept: Balls to the wall…man
  • 1 0
 I think he dropped a bollock on this one.
  • 2 1
 Oh my god, that's horrible. I might have died from the fear alone.
  • 1 0
 Look mama!!, I can ride without... Ohlalá!!


Florent, get well soon!!
  • 1 0
 Jesus christ that is a real life nightmare, glad he's okay!
  • 1 0
 Mannnnnnnnnnnn...... To say that I was afraid of a simple vasectomy.....
  • 1 0
 He must have been ripping down the mountain.
  • 1 0
 Pics or it didn't happened
  • 1 0
 This course is a real ball-breaker.
  • 1 0
 Dude…only two words for that ride: “balls-out!”
  • 1 0
 Heal fast Florence. Come back stronger
  • 1 1
 Could be the next womans world champ. Too bad Dick Pound isn't in charge of the UCI to fast track this for him.
  • 1 0
 Maybe Leatt will consider making a cup....
  • 1 0
 For fuck sake! One more thing I got to think about when riding
  • 1 0
 “He got pole in the dick “
  • 1 0
 Time to start wearing a jockstrap on the greens
  • 1 0
 This story has caused so much pain, wishing Flo best of healing.
  • 1 0
 Rule number one bud: never cross swords
  • 1 0
 IOC Vice President Dick Pound approves this message
  • 1 0
 "To the German Commander: N U T S ! The American Commander"
  • 1 0
 "He gotta pole in the dick"
  • 1 0
 They look like Li Chi's.............. apparently
  • 1 0
 Just sits there on his bike while fellow rider is in serious pain Frown
  • 1 0
 So he was riding balls out?
  • 1 0
 I've done that but to a tree
  • 1 0
 Absolutely terrible. Hopefully a fast recovery for the next race
  • 1 0
 DOES ANYONE ELSE SEE 4 NOW ????????????
  • 1 0
 'He got a pole in the Dick'.......
  • 1 0
 Rip balls
  • 1 0
 Sweet jebus!
  • 1 0
 I hope his pole is OK!
  • 1 0
 It wasn't the meat, it was the two veg.
  • 1 0
 Hate to see it
  • 1 0
 JRA, Doc. I swear!
  • 1 0
 Damn prototypes.
  • 1 0
 Balls of steel! Wink
  • 1 0
 OUCHHH
  • 1 0
 bollocks
  • 1 0
 Dick move, yo!
  • 1 0
 Brutal...
  • 1 0
 Scrambled eggs...Ouch.
  • 1 0
 blue balls for a while
  • 1 0
 French Cut
  • 1 1
 Rubs lamp
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