Cyclist seriously injured by car passenger who pushed rider off bike

A cyclist suffered serious facial injuries and a concussion after they were pushed from their bike by a car passenger who leant out of the window of a passing vehicle to attack the rider, a bike shop owner who happened to be the first person to help and the victim's partner recalling the "horrendous" scene as police have now reappealed for information.

Thames Valley Police is investigating the incident which happened on Tuesday 25 June, just after 8pm near Reading, at the junction of Sulham Hill and Long Lane, in Sulham.

The police force confirmed that a 29-year-old victim has since been discharged from hospital, the rider requiring treatment to serious facial injuries including a fractured jaw, broken teeth, lacerations and a concussion.

Speaking to the BBC about the incident, Josh Paul's partner Harriet said the recovery is expected to take months and he is still suffering a "quite significant" concussion. She also said he was only going to cycle with a camera in future.

"It's a shame we are going to have to do that but our trust in drivers at the moment is significantly reduced as a result of this one hideous act," she said. "One idiot showed how good other people are. We saw the best and the worst of humanity that day and the best certainly outweighed the worst."

One of those who helped was the owner of AW Cycles in Caversham, Rob Bowen, who happened to be passing and found the injured rider.

"I have been in the trade for 20 years. I have heard of people leaning out [of vehicles] and slapping people. But I have never heard of anyone being pushed off like that. It's horrendous," he said. "I rarely see incidents like this. It's usually a little bump or a bent wheel. Often it's a mistake, it's not usually someone doing it maliciously."

PC Jake Schulz added: "Unfortunately, due to the nature of the incident, the victim was not able to see the person who carried out the assault, or the car in which they were travelling. However, if you have any information which you think could be useful to our investigation, please get in touch by calling us on 101, quoting reference number 43240299907.

"You can also report anonymously by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, or by making a report online."

The news comes as an accountant from Glasgow has urged for CCTV to be installed on cycle routes after he was left bruised and bleeding when a group of youths on motorbikes pursued him on National Cycle Route 75 before kicking his front wheel as they passed, causing him to fall into the bushes.

The attack also happened on the same Tuesday evening, as Fahad Shafiq cycled from his work in Clydebank home to Dalmarnock, Glasgow Live reports.

"I usually drive into work but a couple of times a week I've started cycling. I've never had any problems until that day," he said. "I had made it about to the bridge over Harland Street when I noticed these two youths on motorbikes. They had stopped but as I was going past one of them tried to kick my bike.

"I kept going but they followed me for another 200 metres before kicking me off of the bike and I landed in the bushes. It was terrifying. I'm not sure if they were angry about something or just thought it was fun. But I was really traumatised by it. I don't think I'll be able to cycle to work or go out on the bike anytime soon.

"When I was speaking to the police, a guy on the same motorbike drove past. They were always there, but the officers said because there was no CCTV they can't do anything because there is a slim chance of catching anyone. I thought the council were investing in and pushing cycling as an alternative way to travel instead of cars. But the existing routes are not safe."

Earlier in June, Surrey Police arrested a 15-year-old after a violent attack on a cyclist near Box Hill left the victim seriously injured with a punctured lung when masked thugs on a motorbike kicked him off on a popular cycle path.

The rider suffered broken bones and a punctured lung in the attack and told road.cc he had little memory of it except being "suddenly and violently pushed down onto the ground".

A month earlier, in May, a similarly concerning incident was reported at the other end of the country, a Northumberland-based cyclist riding a TT bike on the A1068 shoved from his bike by the passenger of a BMW. Carl Donaldson was training for the 47-mile Tyneside Vagabonds CC Mountain Time Trial, but suffered a broken shoulder blade and was critical of Northumbria Police's response, accusing the force of a "distinct lack of effort".

Last summer, an Ironman athlete suffered a broken collarbone when she was deliberately pushed off her bike by a laughing car passenger in Kent.

In France, two men were handed a two-year suspended prison sentence after at least 12 cyclists were pushed from their bikes in similar incidents in a rural part of the country's south-west over a period of several months, with some suffering injuries including a fractured wrist and collarbone.

Brice Zanin, the lawyer representing several cyclists attacked, suggested the only motive for the incidents could be "idiocy" and said the reports the men responsible had laughed suggested cyclists were being targeted for "fun".

"The only motive was idiocy, because once the victims had been pushed off their bikes, the men drove off laughing in their car. It was idiocy and a desire to have fun to the detriment of others," he said.