Belgian cyclist Wouter Weylandt died today during the third stage of the prestigious Giro d’Italia bike race, nearly one year to the day that he won the same stage and popped champagne in celebration.

Weylandt, 26, is the first cyclist to die during the Giro d’Italia in 25 years, and the first to die in any prominent cycling race since 1995. Italian cyclist Fabio Casartelli died during a descent in the 15th stage of that year’s Tour de France.

Weylandt was in the middle of a steep descent during the race’s third stage, a scenic 107-mile ride that stretches from Reggio Emilia to Rapallo, when he lost control and crashed.

This Google Street View embed give you an idea of the terrain Weylandt and the other world-class cyclists encountered today:

The terrain starts getting steeper approximately 25 miles from the finish line; Weylandt was less than 13 miles from the end when he crashed. He had suffered a skull fracture and other facial contusions, and paramedics attempted cardiac massage for 40 minutes before abandoning the effort to revive him.

Within minutes, gruesome videos of the accident, including those showing a motionless Weylandt laying on the pavement, unconscious and unresponsive, as paramedics cut off his helmet, started showing up on YouTube. Some have already been taken down, but some are still there. (WARNING: This content is graphic and some may find it disturbing.)

As news of Weylandt’s death spread through cycling, prayers and condolences poured in from both those on the ground in Italy and members of the cycling community on Twitter and other social media.

And while these sorts of fatalities in competitive cycling are somewhat rare, they do occasionally happen, often with little to no warning. Weylandt was an experienced rider, and his helmet was still on his head when paramedics reached him, so it definitely felt the full impact of the crash.

Sad that it ultimately didn’t save his life.

Photo: AP/Marco Trovati, file