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Reigning Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard suffered a broken collarbone and several broken ribs following a high-speed crash at the Itzulia Basque Country stage race.<\/b><\/p>\n
Vingegaard, 27, was among several riders caught up in the incident which occurred on a bend on a descent.<\/p>\n
Race leader Primoz Roglic and fellow Grand Tour winner Remco Evenepoel were also forced to abandon the race.<\/p>\n
The remaining 35km of Thursday’s fourth stage were neutralised.<\/p>\n
Only the six riders in the front group contested the stage win, with Louis Meintjes taking victory.<\/p>\n
“It’s not the way you want to win,” the South African said.<\/p>\n
Meintjes’ team Intermarche-Wanty said: “Our thoughts are with all the riders involved in the nasty crash. Safety and wellbeing of our colleagues, it’s all that matters.”<\/p>\n
The crash occurred after one rider fell, leading to several others leaving the road. Ambulances attended the scene and Denmark’s two-time Tour de France winner Vingegaard was taken away on a stretcher.<\/p>\n
Team Visma-Lease a Bike said Vingegaard is stable and conscious but remains in hospital “as a precaution”. <\/p>\n
Belgian Evenepoel, the 2022 Vuelta a Espana winner, suffered a fracture to his right collarbone and his right scapula and will have an operation on his collarbone.<\/p>\n
Also taken to hospital was UAE Team Emirates rider Jay Vine, whose medical director later confirmed had sustained cervical and two thoracic spine vertebral body fractures.<\/p>\n
Race organisers said the stage times would not be counted for the general classification. <\/p>\n
Slovenian Roglic held a seven-second lead over Evenepoel after three stages, with Vingegaard a further seven seconds behind in fifth.<\/p>\n
But Dane Mattias Skjelmose of Lidl-Trek now holds the overall lead by four seconds heading into the fifth of six stages.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n