On the opening race day of the 2022 Isle of Man TT, a crash early on in the first Sidecar race brought out the red flags. The riders involved were Cesar Chanal and Olivier Lavorel, and at the time it was believed and reported that Lavorel had been killed in the crash, while Chanal was in hospital.
At Visordown, we reported this information on Saturday as it was the official information published by the Isle of Man TT press office, and therefore believed at the time to be true and accurate.
It has now emerged that Chanal and Lavorel were in fact misidentified on Saturday, and that in fact it was Cesar Chanal who died, while Olivier Lavorel is in hospital.
A statement from the Isle of Man TT published today (8 June 2022) reads as follows: “On Saturday 4th June during the opening lap of the first Sidecar Race of the 2022 Isle of Man TT Races, an accident at Ago’s Leap involving outfit number 21 of César Chanal and Olivier Lavorel resulted in the death of one of the competitors.
“The race was stopped with the deployment of full-course red flags, and medical personnel, a Travelling Marshal, and the emergency services were immediately dispatched to the scene.
“One of the competitors sustained injuries that would not support life and was sadly declared dead at the scene. The second competitor was unconscious with severe injuries.
“The injured competitor was treated at the roadside before being transferred to Noble’s Hospital, and then airlifted to a specialist hospital in Liverpool to receive treatment.
“An initial identification procedure was conducted using established procedures and would appear to have resulted in a mistaken identification.
“We now believe it was César Chanal who died at the scene of the accident on Saturday 4th June. Olivier remains in a critical condition and continues to receive treatment.
“Both competitors’ families have been informed. A thorough review of the processes relating to the identification of competitors will take place in due course.
“Our thoughts are with the family and loved ones of both Olivier and César at this truly devastating time.”
The statement from the Isle of Man TT also asks that people do not speculate regarding the crash and the resultant, apparent, misidentification on social media.
The Isle of Man TT has also been asked by the Coroner of Inquests to not make further comment on this incident as the Coronial process is currently underway.
