PROFESSIONAL cyclist Chris Ward was injured after falling head first over his handlebars in Pewsey when his bike wheel got stuck in a rut in the road.

Mr Ward, 55, has been competing at European level for over 15 years and described it as the worst incident he has ever had during his cycling career.

His injuries included tearing muscles in his shoulder and suffering a torn rotator cuff in his shoulder.

Despite his injuries Wiltshire Council called the standard of the road acceptable and said it would not carry out any work in the area.

Mr Ward was on his way from London to Bath to attend his eldest daughter’s graduation ceremony, when as he cycled down the hill on Milton Road in Pewsey, his front wheel became locked in a rut in the road surface, throwing the wheel off course and causing him to flip over the handlebars.

Neighbours rushed out to give him first aid and a passing driver called 999. He was later collected up by his wife and taken to Bath RUH.

People at the scene told him the road was an accident blackspot and similar crashes had happened with bikers in the last 12 months.

Mr Ward, who is a writer from London, said: “In hindsight it could have been a lot worse.

“We got to our daughter’s graduation in Bath, she is our eldest and we wouldn’t have missed it for anything.”

“I have no idea how long I will be out of action for.

“The car behind me stopped straight away, I think they were more shocked about it than I was.

“The first thing I knew was when I was hitting the floor, it happened very fast.

“I am lucky not have broken anything.

“I was coming down the hill and going faster than usual when I hit the groove in the road. The problem with it is that it is at an angle, if it had been 90 degrees I would have cycled over it. As it was I only needed to have my front wheel a fraction to the right for it to twist it.”

He has written to Wiltshire Council to beg for the road to be repaired before a more serious incident takes place.

A Wiltshire Council spokesman said: “We are aware of the local concern, however the road is at an acceptable standard as defined by the national guidance and our stated service levels.

“We will monitor the condition of the highway to ensure it is maintained and will schedule additional work if required.”