Over the weekend, a female spectator on the side of the road held up a large sign and caused a massive pile-up at the 2021 Tour de France. Her outstretched arm—holding the sign—hit one rider who was cycling near the lead of the pack. That rider fell, and then dozens of riders crashed behind him.

There were several serious injuries as a result of the incident, but one quick-thinking mom made sure her child wasn’t swept up in the carnage.


In the video, which quickly went viral after it was shared on Twitter, you can see the mom acting on her instincts, which were undoubtedly kicked into high gear.

Here’s a video of the actual crash as it unfolded:


Fan with sign causes huge pile-up in Stage 1 of the Tour de France | Cycling on NBCSports

www.youtube.com

The mom, who was standing among fellow spectators on the side of the road, sees the domino effect of the pile-up and notices that riders are falling very close to where she and the child are standing. That’s when she does what any mom would do in the moment—she yanks that child up swiftly to get him out of the way and to safety.

As Twitter user @nyvelocity says, “Mom. Of. The. Year.”

Authorities spent the last few days searching for the sign-holding spectator. She was found and arrested today after presenting herself at a police station. She’s currently in custody in France and has been charged with involuntarily causing injury and putting the life of others at risk.

All in all, there were 21 injuries as a result of the opening day of the Tour de France. Thankfully due to the quick actions of this mom, she and her small child were not among them.