The Tour de France champion, Jonas Vingegaard, was taken to hospital with a broken collarbone after a serious crash on stage four of the Itzulia Basque Country.
Vingegaard also suffered several broken ribs from the high-speed accident that also included Remco Evenepoel and Primoz Roglic among a group of 12 affected riders. “It was a nasty crash, but fortunately he is stable and conscious. He remains in hospital as a precaution. Thank you for all your messages,” Vingegaard’s team Visma-Lease a Bike said in a statement.
Six riders went to hospital after the incident, including the Australian Jay Vine, who was diagnosed with a fractured cervical vertebra and two fractures in his thoracic spine. “Fortunately, there were no neurological problems and there are no other serious injuries or skull injuries,” Vine’s UAE Team Emirates said in a statement.
Evenepoel’s team Soudal-QuickStep revealed the Belgian must undergo surgery on a fractured collarbone and fractured scapula. Roglic was the least affected of the big-name trio involved and he headed for the team car having received medical attention. The incident took place when the peloton was descending around a tight right-hand bend with less than 40km of the stage to go, one riding sliding out of the road and on to the bank, sparking a chain reaction as more followed.
The race was then neutralised until the finish, with only the six riders who had been at the front being allowed to sprint for the finish to try to win the stage, victory eventually going to the underwhelmed South African Louis Meintjes, who admitted it was a hollow triumph.
“It’s a sad day. I wish all the guys who crashed all the best and wish them a fast recovery,” Mattias Skjelmose, who took the overall race lead from Roglic, said at the finish. “My mind is with the guys who crashed, and right now I am not thinking about the leader’s jersey.”
Vingegaard won the Tour de France in 2022 and 2023 but with this year’s event starting on 29 June, doubt now hangs over his ability to defend his crown.