Cav crashes heavily in Switzerland

Manx cycling star Mark Cavendish reportedly suffered cuts and bruising when he was involved in a big crash while sprinting for the finish line, at the end of the fourth stage of the Tour of Switzerland.

Cav looked to have got himself into a winning position, with around 40 metres to go, but he touched wheels with Heinrich Haussler.

At that point, most of the world's top sprinters were in contention and many couldn't avoid the mass pile-up.

However, Alessandro Petacchi was able to steer clear and took the chequered flag.

According to reports, Cav was still expected to be able to start the Tour de France at the beginning of next month, but his HTC-Columbia team confirmed would undergo a series of X-rays as a precautionary measure.

He was said to be very shaken, but didn't appear to have broken any bones.

It was also suggested he might start the fifth stage today (Wednesday).

A spokesman said: 'He walked away from the crash, but the problem was mainly the impact of people hitting him, and he fell really badly on his back.'

The 97th Tour de France will run from Saturday, July 3 to Sunday, July 25.