Mini-hecatomb on the Tour. After the chaotic first stage around Nice on Saturday, Belgian Philippe Gilbert, who suffers from a fractured patella in his left knee after a fall during the first stage, must give up continuing the Tour de France, his team announced on Sunday. Lotto.
Gilbert, one of the most successful riders in the classics, was hit in one of the many crashes that punctuated the first stage around Nice. An MRI performed on Saturday evening showed a fractured kneecap for the Belgian rider who nevertheless managed to complete the stage.
" I was sick. A pain that I recognized, ”said the Liege driver, who had abandoned the 2018 Tour for the same reason after a fall in the Pyrenees. His team must therefore start the second stage on Sunday, 186 kilometers long around Nice, with two fewer riders since the German John Degenkolb, former winner of Paris-Roubaix, was put out of time after the first stage.
Another rider, the Spaniard Rafael Valls, is also forced to abandon the Tour even before the second day. Valls, who also fell in the first stage, suffers from a fracture of the right femur, according to the details of the Bahrain team. Other riders badly banged up have decided to continue the race but could suffer on Sunday during the second stage, very mountainous. This is the case for example of Wout Poels, victim of a broken rib.
Sport
Tour de France: "We had 100 guys ashore" ... Why were there so many crashes in Nice?
- Philippe Gilbert
- Cycling
- Tour de France
- Sport
- Cycling