Olympic champion will miss the Paris Games after a freak accident

LONDON – British track cyclist Katie Archibald will not compete in the Paris Olympics this summer after breaking two leg bones in a freak accident.

Archibald, who won gold medals at the last two Summer Olympics, broke her tibia and fibula and dislocated an ankle when she tripped on garden steps on Tuesday, she said in a post on Instagram.

“I tripped over a step in the garden and somehow managed to dislocate my ankle; break my tibia and fibula; and tear two ligaments from the bone. Who cares,” she said on Instagram. The 30-year-old had to undergo surgery for ligament damage and to reattach her bones.

“A hundred apologies for what this means for the Olympic team, which I am told I am not involved in,” she said. “I’m still processing that piece of news, but I thought I’d better confirm it publicly rather than leaving it to the grapevine (trip hazards and all).”

The Summer Olympics will take place along the River Seine in Paris from July 26.