Track cycling descends into chaos as athlete’s wheel explodes in major crash at Paris 2024 Olympics

Three cyclists lost control of their bikes in the women's Olympic cycling keirin quarter-final due to what appeared to be an exploding tire.

China's Liying Yuan had to be helped off the track after her bike was left in pieces following the suspected tire burst.

Debris from the bike was left scattered across the track, as well as remains of her helmet.

Lea Friedrich of Germany, world champion Ellesse Andrews of New Zealand and Nicky Degrendele of Belgium were all leading the way as they looked set to claim their semi-final spot.

Yuan, who had been in fourth, tried to gain ground.

However, her chase went totally wrong as she battled for space with Dutch rider Steffie van der Peet as they crossed the finish line.

As the tire appeared to explode, Belgium's Degrendele was also brought down in the process.

Yuan was the last of the three riders to stand up.

Degrendele was able to walk off, whilst van der Peet was left with a shredded skinsuit and bloody burns from hitting the track.

It took almost 15 minutes to repair the velodrome and clean away the shards of bikes and helmets.

The six-lap keirin begins with riders following a motorised bike - called a derny - for three laps.

When it swings off, the riders are left to sprint for three more laps. 

This is when incidents such as Thursday night's occur, when athletes battle in tiny areas of space to edge their way to victory.

However, it's rare to see a bicycle wheel fully explode on an athlete in the event.

New Zealand's Andrews went on to seal gold in the event later on Thursday evening.

Netherlands' Hetty van de Wouw finished in silver, whilst Team GB's Emma Finucane took bronze.

Yuan, who was making her Olympic debut this summer, is a two-time world championships medallist in the women's team sprint event (silver in 2022, bronze in 2023).