Katie Archibald and Neah Evans crash after a women's team pursuit race
Archibald hit her teammate after the conclusion of a heat race
Danny Lawson/PA Images via Getty Images
  • In an embarrassing Olympic incident, Team GB cyclist Katie Archibald crashed into her own teammate.
  • Archibald hit teammate Neah Evans after the finish of GB's women's team pursuit heat.
  • She was so embarrassed she compared it to "when you turn up to school naked."
  • Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

British cyclist Katie Archibald compared crashing into her own teammate at the Tokyo Olympics to turning up to school naked and said it will be the last thing she thinks about before she dies.

Archibald, who earned gold at the Rio Olympics, had just crossed the line in the team pursuit heat against the USA when she collided with her own teammate Neah Evans, and sent both of them skidding across the floor.

Jason Kenny looks as Neah Evans and Katie Archibald crashes
The pair crashed shortly after crossing the finishing line
ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images

The team would go on to win silver in the team pursuit event, but Archibald said she was "utterly mortified" about the crash.

"I think that's going to be the last thing I think about on my deathbed."

"I was saying to someone else, it's like you turn up to school completely naked and you realize you're not dead so you can continue on.

"So I hit the deck and thought this is the worst that could possibly happen," Archibald told former Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins in an interview.

The 27-year-old said that, despite the embarrassment, the crash helped her calm down.

"I couldn't have gone into a better person, Neah was so understanding and we went into the final with nothing to lose," she said.

The Team GB cyclists after the team pursuit at the Tokyo Olympics
The team recovered from the crash to take silver
Tim de Waele/Getty Images

Team GB were ultimately defeated by Germany in the final. The German team set a new world record in the process.

"I think that was the big fight for the day, try and make it into the gold medal final then you're guaranteed an Olympic medal," Archibald said.

"That was something special to get on the start line and say we've won something here."

Archibald's wasn't the only crash involving a Team GB cyclist in the velodrome Tuesday. In the men's team pursuit, rookie Harry Tanfield was crashed into by Denmark's Frederik Madsen, a collision that prompted a furious reaction from the Dane, even though it was his own fault.

Read the original article on Insider