Mathieu Baumel, the 49-year-old Frenchman, Copilot of Nasser Al-Attiyah on the Dakar for ten years and winner of the rally four times (2015, 2019, 2022, 2023), is a real miracle. On January 29, he was overthrown by a car. Amputated with the right leg, he experienced twice, heart stops during the operating room. But “twice I have chosen to come back, I reopened my eyes when I was already dead,” he testified on Monday in an interview with France Info.
He tells his accident more at length: “I was the godfather of a stable which hired four female crews. Departure from Paris for Reims, for the official ceremony. On the road, one of the cars broke down. We stopped to provide assistance and time to set up, another vehicle came to hit the broken car, which projected me against the tow truck and crushed both legs. »»
Transported to the hospital, Mathieu Baumel describes the moment when he lost his right leg: “I had all the bones of the two broken legs: fueled, femur, tibia, on each side. It was not very beautiful. It was necessary to make the decision of the amputation, followed by the rehabilitation operation of the left leg. Clearly, I will have a right side prosthesis. For the left leg, they integrated a “nailing” system. It is a titanium rod that crosses the bone right through, from top to bottom, which allows you to do like a pearl necklace. We enter all the pieces of bone, knowing that I had the femur and the tibia in four parts! Luckily, the knee and the ankle are intact. I think we saved my left leg. »»
Operated for eight hours, Baumel spent two days in a coma before waking up. “But I knew that I still had things to do and above all, I wanted to see my family. This is what made me come back. Also in his hospital in Reims before being transferred to a specialized center in Grau-du-Roi in the Camargue, he already thinks later, convinced that he will be able to pilot again. “You have to have a goal, and mine is very clear: I want to get back in a racing car. Winning the Dakar with my prosthesis would be incredible! »»