Virgin Group founder Richard Branson had a brush with death when he was flung over the handlebars of his bicycle and fell head first onto the pavement near his home in the British Virgin Islands.
“I really thought I was going to die,” the media mogul wrote in a statement on Virgin’s website which was posted along with grisly photos of the wreck’s bloody aftermath.
Branson, 66, had been cycling Monday evening with two of his children, Holly and Sam, on Virgin Gorda island as they trained for the month-long “Virgin Strive Challenge,” a charity hiking, biking and swimming challenge through Italy planned for the first week of September. Virgin Gorda is less than four miles from Branson’s privately-owned Necker Island.
While peddling down a hill towards the island’s Leverick Bay, the business magnate hit a speed bump referred to with his British-ism “sleeping policeman” causing him to lose control.
“The next thing I knew, I was being hurled over the handlebars and my life was literally flashing before my eyes,” the British entrepreneur wrote. His mangled bicycle was flung over the side of a nearby cliff and recovered later.
My life flashed before my eyes – fell headfirst over my bike handlebars https://t.co/aEh6TsDQz4 pic.twitter.com/U9fWDGVWhO— Richard Branson (@richardbranson) August 26, 2016
Branson was flown to Miami for X-rays and scans and found he suffered a cracked cheek, torn ligaments and a “badly damaged” knee and chin. He credited a helmet with saving his life.
Branson said that he will “hopefully” still take part in the Virgin Strive Challenge.
The more than 1,200-mile philanthropic marathon starts with a five day hike from the base of the Matterhorn peak in northern Italy and includes several days of cycling down to the southern tip of Italy and a swim to Sicily through the Straits of Messina. Money raised through the event will benefit the Big Change youth entrepreneurship charity, which was founded by Branson’s kids.
Branson and his family have participated in the physical challenge since its inception in 2014.
