Damien Touzé reveals doctor pierced stomach wound with scissors as cycling future hangs in balance

Speaking to Vélo Magazine, Touzé described the ordeal that followed his crash on stage 4 of the Tour of Oman on 10 February. The Frenchman has not raced since and faces an uncertain future in professional cycling.

Touzé first joined Cofidis in 2019 and returned to the team in 2025 after four seasons at AG2R. He has ruled out dropping to amateur level and knows the timing works against him.

"Who is going to sign me? I'm well aware the circumstances don't play in my favour. I've no desire to go cap in hand," he said.

Touzé's ordeal began when he crashed at around 60km/h after his bike skidded on a cat's eye as he reached for a bottle, according to his account given to Ouest-France in February.

Cofidis later confirmed that he had fractured his tibia and torn the cruciate and collateral ligaments in his knee, on top of severe internal injuries.

His condition worsened in the first days after the crash, before the damage to his abdomen was discovered. Team doctor Annemie Batjoens was with him throughout.

"The pain was horrible, my belly was swollen and a fever was starting. Two days in, I still hadn't had anything to eat or drink," he said.T

Touzé also described the conditions he witnessed during his hospital treatment in Oman.

"It was utter carnage. The moment I arrived, I watched the man beside me die of a heart attack," he recalled.

He was subsequently treated in Sohar, where doctors identified serious abdominal injuries and performed emergency surgery.

Touzé was later moved to Muscat, where his ordeal continued. His abdominal wound had become infected and one night swelled with blood and pus.

"A doctor turned up with a pair of scissors and pierced straight into the wound on my stomach," he said.

Touzé said he was given no anaesthetic and was fully conscious during the procedure. According to La Dépêche, his wife Sofia secretly filmed the scene.

After around ten days in Oman, he was flown to Belgium and underwent a five-hour operation in Menen, where surgeons discovered a problem with the surgery performed in Oman.

"The abdominal wall hadn't been closed up properly. The intestine was touching the skin and that caused a serious infection," he explained.

In April, Touzé told L'Équipe that he had called Sofia from his hospital bed in Oman to tell her he was going to die.

His season had already been ruled out in February, and he later required further surgery on his knee ligaments. At the time of the April interview, his recovery was expected to take at least eight to nine months.

Now, with Cofidis not retaining him for 2027, Touzé faces another challenge as he tries to secure his place in the professional peloton.

Despite everything he has been through, the Frenchman remains convinced he can return to his previous level, provided a team is willing to give him the opportunity.

"I know I still have the engine. All I need is a team that's prepared to take the risk and give me the time to get back to the level I was at before," he said.