Former Washington Capitals defenseman Zdeno Chara was involved in a bicycle accident on Wednesday and stayed on scene to provide first aid.
The 49-year-old Hall of Famer, who also served as the captain of the Boston Bruins and played for the New York Islanders and Ottawa Senators, was training back home in Slovakia near the village of Beluša.
When biking, Chara collided with a 56-year-old runner on the bike path. Chara immediately intervened and assisted the struck pedestrian.
"Last week, I was involved in a collision with a runner on the bike path near Beluša. It was a situation I could not avoid or prevent," Chara told Športový Čas, per a DeepL translation. "Emergency medical services and the police were called to the scene immediately. I provided first aid and subsequently cooperated with all authorities.
“They agreed that I was not at fault, but that it was the runner’s mistake — he shouldn’t have been on the bike path, was running with his headphones on and suddenly changed direction, leaving me no time to react.”
Since the accident, Chara has been in touch with the runner's family, and is hoping that he will recover smoothly.
Chara is staying in Trenčín as he prepares to play in a farewell game for his career on Aug. 21 featuring several former NHLers.
The Slovak defenseman appeared in 55 games for the Capitals back in 2020-21, picking up two goals and eight assists for 10 points, along with 44 penalty minutes and a plus/minus of plus-5.
