Luckless Aussie star Vine hospitalised after Giro crash
Ian Chadband |
Luckless Jay Vine has suffered a Giro d’Italia-ending crash, the Australian Tour Down Under champ having to be ferried to hospital following the mass accident on the second stage involving nearly 20 riders.
It was the latest misfortune for the injury-prone Vine, whose career was nearly ended by a dreadful back-breaking fall in the Tour of the Basque Country in 2024 and who was competing in his first race since another heavy crash at the Tour of Catalunya in March.
That race had in turn been the 30-year-old’s first since an infamous incident in January when he battled through the final stage to claim victory in the Tour Down Under despite a crash involving a kangaroo that came bounding into the peloton.
The latest accident came before the final climb on the hilly, rain-soaked roads from Burgas to Veliko Tarnovo, with 30-year-old Vine and several others from his powerful UAE Team Emirates squad taking heavy spills while taking a wet turn.
Vine had to be taken away on a stretcher and put into the back of an ambulance, his race over, while teammate Marc Soler also ended in hospital.
Team leader Adam Yates ended bloodied, covered in mud and with head injuries but managed to finish the race, though his hopes of winning are over after he finished nearly 14 minutes behind the eventual stage winner, Guillermo Thomas Silva, the first ever Uruguayan winner in a grand tour.
UAE boss Mauro Gianetti admitted the team had feared this could happen. “We were scared because we knew that the weather and the rain would make the roads very dangerous,” he said. “And this happened.
“We have two riders, Jay Vine and Marc Soler, on the way to hospital. We just hope it’s nothing too bad. Nothing is clear about their conditions for the moment. We’re just waiting for information from the doctors.”
It was another distressing episode for Vine, who’s endured a catalogue of misfortune in races while becoming a force in Grand Tours, winning four stages of the Spanish Vuelta.
The world time trial silver medallist is such a strong climber, he would even have been a potential back-up option for UAE to challenge for a race victory.
The crash ensured the race was temporarily neutralised but when it eventually resumed with 18.2km left, favourite Jonas Vingegaard attacked and opened a gap on the peloton before Giulio Pellizzari and Lenny Van Eetvelt chased him down the descent.
But with half a kilometre left, the peloton caught up with the trio, leading to a frantic sprint in which XDS Astana rider Silva prevailed in a photo finish from Spaniard Florian Stork and Italian Giulio Ciccone to also become the first Uruguayan to take the leader’s pink jersey.
AAP