Cyclist Josh Quigley flown home after serious crash in Dubai

A record-breaking cyclist who had a serious crash in Dubai has been flown home to Scotland.

Josh Quigley was cycling down Jebel Jais, one of the highest mountains in the United Arab Emirates, when he crashed at 40mph last month.

The 28-year-old fractured his spine and pelvis in two places, broke his elbow, shoulder and four ribs, and two spinal vertebrae were misaligned.

It was the second crash he had suffered in little over a year.

The full-time athlete was in Dubai for training due to thick snow in his home town of Livingston in West Lothian when the latest crash happened on 26 January.

Mr Quigley told BBC Scotland a strong gust of wind caused him to crash.

He said: "It was horrible. There was that second where I knew I was going to crash, where I had that dread knowing how fast I was going.

"My last crash was different because I was hit by a car from behind so I didn't know about it until I woke up in the hospital.

"This time I was conscious throughout and crashing at that speed was pretty traumatic."

He was hit by a vehicle in Texas during a round-the-world-trip in December 2019.

He had life-threatening injuries and operations on a broken heel and ankle as well as a stent fitted in an artery in his neck, which feeds blood to his brain.

Mr Quigley said: "The accident last time was worse but I'm less mobile this time due to my back fractures.

"Last time it was the first time I had been so injured so I made mistakes in the recovery process. Now I've been here before I know what to do and I will be more patient and let my body heal as I know I can then get back to full fitness quickly."

Mr Quigley recovered after his first accident and went on to shave six minutes off the existing North Coast 500 world record when he completed the 516-mile Highland route in 31hrs and 17 minutes last September.

The route is ranked as one of the world's toughest endurance challenges as it has 34,423ft (10,492m) of ascent - more than Mount Everest, which stands at 29,031ft (8,848m).

He said: "I have more peace of mind this time too because I know I got through it the last time and went onto have an amazing year.

"I had the belief last time that I would recover and get back on the bike but there is one thing having belief and another knowing I can get through it.

"I'm in a lot of pain just now but I'm drawing on my experience from last time and I know the future will be bright again."

He said he was planning another record-breaking challenge for later in the year once he had fully recovered.