| Stig Broeckx | |
| Birth Date: | 10 May 1990 |
| Birth Place: | Mol, Belgium |
| Height: | 188 cm |
| Weight: | 73 kg |
| Currentteam: | Retired |
| Discipline: | Road |
| Role: | Rider |
| Amateuryears1: | 2012–2013 |
| Amateuryears2: | 2013 |
| Amateurteam2: | (stagiaire) |
| Proyears1: | 2014–2016 |
Stig Broeckx (born 10 May 1990 in Mol) is a Belgian former racing cyclist, who competed as a professional for from 2014 to 2016.[1]
During the third stage of the 2016 Tour of Belgium, on 28 May, Broeckx was in a crash caused by two motorbikes that ran into the peloton when it was descending at speed. He was one of the 11 riders hospitalized.[2] He was reported to suffer severe injuries (his heart stopped beating for a time) and was placed in an induced coma at the hospital in Gent.[3] In June 2016, Lotto Soudal team issued a medical update explaining that Stig Broeckx was in a vegetative state with severe brain damage, with attempts to bring him out of his coma so far unsuccessful.[4] A further update in September 2016 stated that Broeckx was being cared for in a rehabilitation centre in Overpelt, and was considered to be in a minimally conscious state, with no hope of recovery.[5] His family insisted that Broeckx be sent to a pioneering coma centre in Liège; in December 2016 team doctor Servaes Bingé confirmed Broeckx was out of a coma.[6]
By 2019 Broeckx had recovered to a great extent, and was able to walk with a cane, although he had no memory of the five years leading up to the accident, and found out who he had been from the Internet. He cycles for recreation; when asked if afraid, he replied "I was already dead, so why [be afraid] now?".[7]