PETALING JAYA, May 29 — National athlete Kimbeley Yap, 28, was lucky to escape with her life after being involved in a high-speed crash yesterday morning while cycling home.

Fortunately for the SEA Games triathlon gold medallist, she did not suffer serious injuries.

Yap, who became a triathlete after representing Malaysia in swimming and cycling, was hit from the back on the Penchala Link highway when she was cycling to her home in Damansara Perdana.

According to Malaysian National Cycling Federation (MNCF) deputy president Datuk Naim Mohamad, Yap’s CT scan was normal and she suffered soft tissue injuries but no fractures.

Yap’s half brother, Daniel Bego, who is a national swimmer, said: “She has fallen from her bicycle a few times but never got hurt like this. But I’m glad she is well.”

City traffic police chief ACP Rusli Mohd Noor said the 20-year-old driver who allegedly knocked down Yap lodged a police report yesterday evening. 

“The private college student turned up at the Petaling Jaya traffic police station, and lodged a report on the 8.45am incident and is cooperating with police in the investigation,” he said. 

Rusli said the case was being investigated for reckless and dangerous driving.

If convicted, the driver could face up to five years in jail and a fine of up to RM15,000.

Yap’s accident was not the first involving Malaysia’s top cyclists. There have been several mishaps, including a couple of fatal ones, in recent times.

Terengganu state cyclist Mohd Asmui Ali Awang, 20, was killed when he was run over by his escort van after he fell off his bicycle along the Kuala Terengganu-Kuantan road last October.

Another of the state’s cyclists, Syafiq Imran Syahril, 15, was run over by a trailer in Kuala Terengganu four months earlier.

In 2012, four cyclists — Mariana Mohamad, Masziyaton Mohd Radzi, Mohd Aziz Zahit and Mohd Azri Ahmad — were hit by a swerving car in Putrajaya during Asian Cycling Championships selection.

Naim, who believed Yap would have followed the guidelines for road cycling, raised the issue of driving attitude.

“Unlike in Europe, the US or Australia, the cycling culture is not widely accepted here yet.

“There, road users have a sense of respect for the cyclists,” said Naim.

“We will have to put in more effort to educate and instill awareness in them (drivers).

“There are cycling lanes, and safe zones for cycling, but the cycling culture in Malaysia is still in the initial stages.

“That is why we always remind the cycling teams to train only in the presence of a car escort or with a coach following on his motorbike,” he said.