Sonny Colbrelli is in a "stable condition", his team have said, after he collapsed from a suspected cardiac arrest just metres after the finish of stage one of the Volta a Catalunya.
Almost immediately after the finish line and finishing second, the Bahrain-Victorious rider fell to the ground. He was attended to by medics within seconds and was promptly given treatment to attempt to revive him. It is said that he responded positively to the treatment and he is conscious.
The team released a short statement on Monday evening: "Following the sprint on Stage 1 of Volta a Catalunya, Sonny Colbrelli fell unconscious. Colbrelli underwent further medical assistance, and he was in stable condition upon being taken into an ambulance to Hospital Universitari de Girona to investigate his condition further.
"Team Bahrain Victorious would like to thank the organisers and the medical teams for their support and assistance."
"Further updates will follow."
There was a notable air of eeriness at the finish on the Catalan coast, with one Bahrain-Victorious team official telling Cycling Weekly 10 minutes following the race conclusion that: "We're still waiting for news."
As medics put up blankets around the rider to prevent people taking photos and videos, one rider from a different team was seen crying and remained at the site for a number of minutes in shock.
Colbrelli appeared in good form, as he finished second on the stage, but shortly after fell unconscious. He withdrew early from Paris-Nice earlier this month with suspected bronchitis, which also kept him out of Milan-San Remo on Saturday.
He is the current European road race champion, and was triumphant in Paris-Roubaix in October. He also came second in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad last month.
Among those to send their best wishes to the Italian rider was Team BikeExchange-Jayco, whose rider Michael Matthews won in front of Colbrelli earlier on Monday in Sant Feliu de Guíxols.
Post-stage, Matthews said: "Firstly, I just want to say, I hope Sonny Colbrelli is ok. I found out after the finish what happened, it’s never nice to hear something like this after your victory and I’m wishing him a good recovery and I’m hoping he’s ok."
The whole team at Cycling Weekly wish Colbrelli well, and hope that he makes a good recovery.
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