Police are searching for a woman who caused a huge crash at the Tour de France.
According to The Sun, the fan managed to inadvertently knock over cyclist Tony Martin while holding out a cardboard sign for the watching TV cameras. The sign read: "Come on granddad-granny", in a mixture of French and German.
This led to a domino effect pile-up, with a number of other cyclists tumbling down mere minutes after Christian Prudhomme had set the 108th edition of the world-famous annual bike race in motion.
Take a look at this dramatic footage of the crash in the video below:A total of 21 participants in the race were hurt as a result of the accident, with German rider Jasha Sutterlin forced to withdraw from the entire contest due to the injuries he sustained.
The female fan who caused the crash fled the scene shortly thereafter. Yet prosecutors in Brittany have since launched a criminal inquiry into the incident with the ultimate aim of apprehending her.
Police investigators have appealed to the public, and are currently seeking information that may help them identify or capture the suspect
Per the above publication, a spokesman for the Finistere Gendarmerie stated:
"The spectator who caused this accident left the scene before the arrival of the investigators. Everything is being done to try and find her.
"She was wearing glasses and dressed in blue jeans, a red and white striped sweater, and a waxed yellow jacket."
Per Daily Mail, deputy director of the Tour de France Pierre-Yves Thouault also had stern words for the woman with the sign, stating that the race's organizers had filed a lawsuit against her.
Thouault stated: "This is unacceptable behavior. There are safety rules to follow. Spectators don't cross the road, they don't take selfies."
He continued: "The Tour must remain a party but because of the attitude of a very small minority, it is ruined. We can no longer accept this.
"We are sueing this woman who behaved so badly. We are doing this so that the tiny minority of people who do this don't spoil the show for everyone."
Daily Mail reports that, if found, the woman faces a year in prison and a fine equivalent to around $18,000.
