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Isle of Man TT release statement after "mistaken identification" over tragic death

The organisers of the Isle of Man TT have said a case of "mistaken identification" has occurred as Cesar Chanal, and not his team-mate Olivier Lavorel as originally reported, was killed in a crash on Saturday

[Cesar Chanel and Olivier Lavorel]

Cesar Chanel and Olivier Lavorel were involved in a crash on Saturday which left one of them dead(Image: Twitter@TTRaces)

Isle of Man TT organisers have said they had a case of "mistaken identification" when naming a French rider who died on Saturday.

It was originally reported that Olivier Lavorel had died following a sidecar crash, but four days later it has been confirmed it was his team-mate Cesar Chanal who passed away. Lavorel remains in a critical condition in hospital.

A statement read: "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 Cesar 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 Cesar Chanal who died at the scene of the accident on Saturday 4th June.

[Cesar Chanel and Olivier Lavorel]

Isle of Man TT organisers have now said it was Chanal, not Lavorel, who died(Image: Twitter@ttracesofficial)

"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 Cesar at this truly devastating time. We ask that people do not speculate on social media."

There have been a total of three deaths at this year's Isle of Man TT. Welsh rider Mark Purslow was killed in a qualifying event crash last week, while Northern Irishman Davy Morgan suffered fatal injuries on Monday.

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