By Thomas Dodd

Italian sprinter Daniele Bennati will be out of action for up to a month after fracturing his vertebrae in a crash at Milan-San Remo last weekend, his team have revealed.

The Tinkoff rider was unable to avoid a mass rider pile up five kilometres before the start of the days’s final climb up the Cipressa.

Bennati landed heavily on his back after being floored in the crash with 25km to go of Saturday’s 291km Monument race.

The 35-year-old underwent scanning on Sunday after the race which confirmed a fracture on the L4 vertebra.

The two-time Tour de France stage winner had entered the Gent-Wevelgem, Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix races, but is now expected to miss those events while he recovers.

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Team Sky’s Geraint Thomas was also involved in the crash, but came away virtually unscathed and lines up alongside Sky teammate Chris Froome at this week’s Volta a Catalunya as planned.

The results from Saturday’s race continue to make the headlines after two riders claimed eventual winner Arnaud Démare received a tow up the Cipressa from one of his team cars.

Démare, who has released his Strava file from the race to help prove his innocence, beat Sky’s Ben Swift into second in the 107th edition of the race on Saturday.