Bora-hansgrohe said Primoz Roglič was lucky enough to escape Thursday's mass crash in Itzulia Basque Country without any fractures after the race leader was one of several riders who fell and abandoned.
The Slovenian was seen limping away from the scene as those seriously injured received further medical attention and gave the thumbs up and waved to the camera as he was taken away from the race in the team car.
A post on social media from Bora Hansgrohe said: “Examinations carried out at the hospital showed that Primoz Roglic did not suffer any fractures as a result of his fall on the Itzolia Basque stage today.” “We also wish the best of luck to all the other riders involved in the accident.”
“Fortunately, all the medical tests on Primoz have not shown any major problems, so he is fine, feeling fine,” sporting director Patxi Vela said in an update on Bora's social media on Friday morning.
“He'll be well soon, we hope. He'll be going home this afternoon, though, I think we should be more than happy.”
Roglic remained motionless for a while in the concrete ditch after the accident, a few meters away from defending Itzolia champion Jonas Vengegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) who remained motionless while teammates and doctors tended to him.
The Dane was left with more serious injuries and after being loaded into an ambulance with oxygen, an update from the team last night revealed he was conscious but “checks at hospital revealed he had a fractured collarbone and several broken ribs.”
Another update from the Dutch team this morning stated: “Further examination at the hospital revealed that [Vingegaard] He also suffered from pulmonary contusion and pneumothorax [collapsed lung]But his condition is stable and he will remain in the hospital.
Roglič was leading the race from Remco Evenpoel (Soudal-QuickStep) after winning the first stage of the time trial but was forced to give up and abandon the leader's jersey after his second heavy crash of the race.
Evenpoel was similarly abandoned but was affected worse by the accident as he suffered a broken collarbone and shoulder bone. However, he avoided real disaster, skillfully jumping onto the concrete ditch on the side of the road before crashing hard onto the grass.
Also greatly affected by the horrific accident were Sean Quinn, who suffered a concussion and a fractured sternum, Nathaniel Tesfatsion, who suffered many bruises and scratches on his right side, Jay Fine, who suffered several fractures in his spine but fortunately avoided neurological injury, and Steve Karras, who suffered an accident. shocking. Right pneumothorax, multiple associated rib fractures and two dorsal spine fractures.
Evenepoel returns to Belgium where he will undergo surgery on Herenthals. His racing program has been heavily influenced by the Ardennes Classics and a defense of the Liège-Bastogne-Liège title has now been ruled out.
But he remained positive in a video update released by his team that his long-term goals – the Tour de France and the Paris Olympics – would not be unduly affected.
Roglic, Vengegaard and Evenpoel are three of the big four favorites expected to be in contention for victory in this year's Tour de France, with each of them from a different team.
Vingegaard's next scheduled race is the Critérium du Dauphiné in June, but his scheduled return is unknown as updates continue to emerge from Visma while he is in hospital.
Roglic's escape without serious injury means he could be back on the bike very soon, and he is expected to start in La Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. However, the team has not yet provided any update on his program, and yesterday's accident would only have exacerbated the scrapes and bruises he already suffered in Stage 3.
Another member of the four pre-Tour favourites, Tadej Bujar (Team UAE) was one of many riders to offer their support after the horrific crash that saw his friends, compatriots and teammate Fine fall.
“Accidents are never something we want to see in cycling. Unfortunately today we saw something really bad,” Pogacar said on his social media.
“I wish my teammate Jay and all my comrades in the peloton a speedy recovery after their hard fall today.”
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