Tour de France cycling champion and Olympic gold medallist Bradley Wiggins is recovering in hospital after a collision with a car.

Wiggins, 32, was thrown off his bike when a white Vauxhall Astra is thought to have pulled out of a petrol station and collided with him.

A police source said his injuries from the crash were thought to be very serious at first, but later it appeared he suffered a number of broken ribs and cuts and bruises. The driver of the Astra, a local woman, was uninjured.

The accident happened at about 6pm on Wednesday in Wrightington, Lancashire, which is near to his family home in Eccleston. Father-of-two Wiggins is known to regularly embark on training rides around the area's rural roads.

Wiggins's wife Cath was on the scene within about five minutes.

In a statement on its website, Team Sky said: "We can confirm that on Wednesday evening Bradley Wiggins was involved in a road traffic accident whilst riding his bike near his home in Lancashire.

"He is being kept in hospital overnight for observation but the injuries he has sustained are not thought to be serious and he is expected to make a full and speedy recovery. We will announce more details in due course."