30 kilometers from the finish of the 4th stage of the Tour of the Basque Country, this April 4, a collective fall occurred in the peloton involving three of the future favorites of the Tour de France including Jonas Vingegaard.
Thunderclap on the Tour of the Basque Country. This Thursday, April 4, a huge fall in the peloton brought down the main favorites for the next Tour de France 2024. In order, Primoz Roglic, Remco Evenepoel and especially Jonas Vingegaard fell in a downhill right turn. The first suffered a second fall in two days, but the Slovenian seemed to be the best off. Although he gave up, he could be seen standing with his thumb raised after the fall without showing too much visible injury. For Remco Evenepoel, the fracture of the clavicle is suspected given the images and his arm in a sling. His team, Soudal Quick Step, announced that the former world champion was going to the hospital to undergo examinations.
For Jonas Vingegaard, the fall is even more spectacular and the concern quite great. The outgoing double winner of the Tour de France remained lying for many minutes on the ground, motionless, with several ambulances around him. A neck brace was placed around the Dane’s neck and head, aided by oxygen. His sporting director, Frans Maassen confirmed on Eurosport that the double winner of the Tour de France is conscious. The Dane suffers from a “broken collarbone” according to his team, Visma-Lease a bike. Examinations also revealed “several broken ribs”. The duration of his absence is not yet known.
Because of this fall, the race was neutralized and stopped even for the peloton. Apart from the big names in cycling, Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates) is also affected and taken to hospital. According to information from his team, the rider is conscious and can exchange. Steff Cras, the Belgian leader of the TotalEnergies team also fell and gave up. He was taken to hospital.
For several years, the falls have been more and more spectacular for runners due to the ever-increasing speed due to the equipment which is constantly evolving and which allows them to go faster and faster… The roads, increasingly dangerous for professional runners are also to be blamed. The deaths in recent months, notably that of Gino Mader during a descent on the Tour de Suisse, unfortunately echo this terrible fall.
