French skipper Cammas to miss Rio after major leg surgery

French America's Cup yachtsman Franck Cammas has undergone extensive surgery after breaking his leg in two places in a horrific training accident on Monday which has ruled him out of next year's Rio Olympics.

The Groupama Team France skipper's absence from the 2016 Games was confirmed by team spokesman Vincent Borde.

"The surgery lasted four hours and it went well," Borde told AFP on Tuesday.

"The tendons and nerves were not damaged as we'd feared. Franck has a double fracture of the tibia and fibula on his right leg.

"He's going to be sidelined during the healing and recovery process, that's to say three to four months with minimal movement.

"But we don't have a precise timetable, we're waiting for the doctor's assessment.

"What's certain is that his Olympic preparation is over.

"Franck is tired, he has had a huge shock, but he is doing okay."

The 42-year-old suffered the accident in the bay of Quiberon in Brittany, where his team were in training for the 2017 America's Cup in Bermuda.

"During a starting procedure move, accelerating fast, for some reason we don't know, Franck fell overboard and unfortunately his foot hit the rudder blade," recounted Borde.

"At that speed the shock was quite violent."

The stricken skipper was airlifted to hospital in Nantes by helicopter.

Cammas is one of France's most successful sailors having won the Volvo Ocean Race in 2011/12.
Source: AFP