U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry broke his right femur in a cycling accident in Scionzier, France, on Sunday morning, State Department spokesman John Kirby said.
The injury is near the site of a previous hip surgery, so Kerry will return to Boston on Sunday for treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital with his doctor who did the prior surgery, the spokesman said in a statement. He was en route as of late Sunday morning, a senior State Department official said.
Kerry regrets that he won’t be able to visit Spain as planned, and he also won’t be able to attend the Paris counter-ISIL coalition ministerial meeting on Tuesday. He will participate in the Paris meeting remotely, Kirby said.
(ISIL is another name for the terror network, ISIS.)
The secretary is stable, his injury is not life-threatening and he should make a full recovery, Kirby said.
“Secretary Kerry is in good spirits and is grateful to the French and Swiss authorities, doctors, and nurses who assisted him after the accident,” the spokesman said.
It can take six months or more for a femur, the thighbone, to heal, depending on the nature of the break, according to orthopedic websites.
Kerry was flown by helicopter to a hospital in nearby Geneva, Switzerland, for examination, Kirby said earlier.
“Paramedics and a physician were on the scene with the Secretary’s motorcade at the time of the accident,” Kirby said. He received initial medical care at the site of the crash.
Kerry had traveled to Geneva for negotiations with Iranian diplomats on that country’s nuclear program. He was cycling about 30 miles from the city, which is close to France.
The secretary is an avid cyclist who also took his bike to the region in March, when he met previously with Iranian diplomats.
Kerry injured his shoulder in a 1992 cycling accident.
