(ANSA) - Lucca, August 14 - Former cycling world champion Mario Cipollini was taken to hospital on Thursday after being involved in a road accident in the Tuscan city of Lucca. The 47-year-old was reportedly hit by a car at a crossroads while on a training ride.
His condition is said not to be serious, although ANSA sources said doctors were considering surgery on an injured knee. Cipollini, a sprinter known as the Lion King for his blond wavy hair and flamboyant style, won the road cycling world championship in 2002, a golden season for him in which he also prevailed in the Milan-Sanremo and Ghent-Wevelgem classics and in six stages of the Giro d'Italia.
Cipollini retired in 2005, although he staged a brief comeback in 2008.
Last year the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) opened a probe after newspapers published documents that they claimed showed Cipollini took part in a sophisticated programme prepared by Spanish doctor Eufemiano Fuentes involving blood doping and the use of blood booster EPO.
Cipollini hospitalized after road accident
Former world champ hit by car while training