Wife rushed to cyclist’s side moments after he was killed

The car which had smashed into the cyclists. 

Moments after a Durban cyclist was run down and killed on an early morning training ride, his wife rushed to his side.

Kings Park Cycling Club chairperson, Richard da Silva, and another cyclist, Jarred Dwyer, were hit by a car while riding at the back of a group on the M4 Ruth First Freeway on Sunday morning. Both died on the scene.

Da Silva’s wife, Sonya, had been cycling ahead of her husband.

Club spokesperson, Wayne Campbell, said a car came around the corner and the driver "lost it".

“They were at the back behind everyone else and this guy just hit them, and he launched them like 80 metres forward.

Seriously tragic

“Richard was dead on impact and Jarred was alive but unconscious. The paramedics were there in minutes. They were excellent but there was nothing they could do for him,” Campbell said.  

“She [Da Silva’s wife] was there when it happened. They tried to keep her away because she had been cycling ahead. It was seriously tragic for her,” he said.

Campbell said it was a black day for cycling in Durban.

“Richard and I were good friends. I was with his family now. His mom asked me if he was doing anything wrong. They were right in the yellow lines,” he said.