Cyclists in Leicestershire are “looking over their shoulders” in fear while police hunt a suspected driver and passenger in a silver BMW who have allegedly attacked three riders in separate incidents.

One rider, Andy Limb, was left with a broken collar bone after he was thrown over the handlebars when a car swerved at him. Another two were badly bruised after a passenger in a car leaned out and pushed them over.

All the attacks happened within six days in a three-mile radius in the south west of the county, and victims, who each identified an older-style silver BMW, said the consequences could have been fatal. Police are now looking at whether the attacks are linked and are appealing for witnesses.

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Mr Limb 55, was riding his bike at about 25mph during a training run in Croft on Saturday when a BMW car swerved and slowed to his speed. Mr Limb, a lorry driver, said: “It swerved on purpose to run me off the road and then I moved left and hit gravel. My front tyre exploded and I summersaulted over the handlebars.

“I remember thinking ‘this is going to be really bad’ and I took the impact down the left side of my body.”

Mr Limb, a member of a running club who is now facing up to 12 weeks off work and will not be able to go on a cycling holiday to Paris to see the Tour de France, added: “I broke my collarbone and my helmet was split in two. If I was not wearing it I could have died. At the very least I would have had severe trauma to my head.

“There is a big cycling community around here and all of them are now very nervous. Now every time they get on a bike they are looking over their shoulder.””

Two days earlier, Martin Webster, a former international rider who runs a bicycle shop, was left with bruising when he came off his bike at 30mph after a BMW car drove alongside him and someone inside leaned out and pushed him. Mr Webster fell off his bike and landed on a verge.

His sister Deborah Langham said: “Martin had just helped direct someone who was lost when a car pulled up. He thought it was the people thanking him, then someone pushed him.”

She said police visited her brother to get a statement. “Martin was quite shaken. What people need to understand is that these incidents are life threatening,” she added.

Colin Haynes, 48, suffered bruised ribs after he was pushed by a car passenger in Broughton Astley as he rode home from work on 1 July. He said: “There was no road rage or anything, a car just came up to me and a hand came out of the passenger side and pushed me over. I was in a lot of pain.”

A Leicestershire Police spokeswoman said: “We are taking these reports very seriously. Investigations are on-going and we have made an appeal for witnesses. Officers are aware of the incidents and their similarities.”