Bike problems aren't new.

Nor are new "wonder materials"

Around 1990, I had a friend with a fancy new aluminum frame bike, & a broken dropout. I don't remember the circumstances, but I think it was just from riding. However, such a failure could certainly knock a person out of a race.

Failed titanium?

And, of course, we periodically see examples of failed steel posted here.

A crash hard enough to crumple carbon fiber could easily have left a steel bike, or a bike of just about any other frame material either unrideable, or dangerous to ride.

An amateur racer might repair a frame like the one [MENTION=381793]gugie[/MENTION] has, but if it was a pro racer, that likely would have been made into scrap metal, and the racer would have gotten a new frame.