Laura Kenny skips surgery to race World Championships after nasty crash

Laura Kenny has opted to skip surgery on her broken shoulder so she can race the World Championships later this month.

Kenny suffered the injury in a high-speed crash during the World Cup last month, but was still selected by British Cycling to race the Track Worlds in Berlin.

The four-time Olympic gold medallist has told BBC Sport that she has skipped an operation on her shoulder after the surgeon told her the Olympics would be “pretty much off the cards.”

She said: “I told him ‘an operation’s not for me, thanks’.

“Did I want an operation to get it fixed, but with a two-week delay in me getting back on the bike, or did I want to just see how it goes? I decided to see how it goes and the next day I got back on the bike.”

Kenny, 27, fell in the tempo race while competing in the omnium during the Milton Track World Cup round in Canada in January, but the fall didn’t deter British Cycling from selecting her to race the Worlds alongside Katie Archibald, Elinor Barker, Eleanor Dickinson and Josie Knight.

The Worlds are a key event for the British track squad as all riders are pursuing a position in the Olympic team in Tokyo this summer.

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After her selection, Kenny said on Instagram: “Crashing out of a World Cup omnium when you’re leading the overall to the last time my shoulder blade was in one piece.

“Probably the hardest 2.5 weeks I have had in my career so far, sat on the aeroplane thinking that’s my Worlds over this year.”

She later added: “Me being me I decided an operation wasn’t for me because I wanted to give the Worlds selection a shot.

“Although it’s taken me out of two of three events, I would have liked to ride, I am so pleased to announce I have been selected for my ninth World Championships.”