Brussels (AFP)
The young Belgian prodigy Remco Evenepoel, victim of a heavy and spectacular fall on Saturday during the Tour of Lombardy, was repatriated to Belgium on Monday, announced his team Deceuninck.
He was transferred from Como hospital to Belgium to Herentals hospital.
Further tests should determine if he needs to have surgery to heal the fracture in the pelvis caused by his fall from a stone bridge.
According to the team doctor, Yvan Vanmol, Evenepoel, 20, will in any case have to respect six weeks of rest in a lying position.
"For now, we assume that an operation will not be necessary. But it is the orthopedic surgeons in Belgium who will decide," Vanmol told RTBF.
Apart from the fractured pelvis, the other injuries are much less serious. "The lung contusion was mild," noted Vanmol.
"Remco has never had a problem breathing, has always been able to speak and his oxygen saturation has never gone down. This bruise is a problem that will resolve itself within a week, if not two, and it is giving him relatively little embarrassment, "he said.
"The + revalidation + (convalescence, Editor's note) of the pelvic fracture will obviously take a long time. We assume six weeks of absolute rest. Rest flat on the bed. Add to that a few weeks before he resumes the bike", concluded the Belgian doctor.
The rider from Schepdaal, winner of four stage races in 2020, including the Tour of Poland, fell in a particularly winding descent 40 km from the finish line of the Lombard classic of which he was the big favorite.
© 2020 AFP