Having gathered reports from all parties involved, Shimano has concluded its investigation into the incidents involving two of its service cars at the Tour of Flanders.
Trek Factory Racing‘s Jesse Sergent suffered a broken collarbone after colliding with a Shimano car in the breakaway, while another service vehicle crashed into the back of an FDJ team car, subsequently knocking Sebastian Chavanel off his bike.
The investigation set out the chain of events leading to the Sergent incident, with Shimano stating that all vehicles were instructed to get in front of the breakaway due to the proximity of the chasing bunch.
With the narrow Belgian roads, the cars found it difficult to pass the break, leading to “the highly qualified driver [choosing] to progress at the wrong moment.”
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Shimano say the driver, reportedly a police officer, has 14 years of experience in the pro peloton, covering World Championships, Olympics and Belgian Classics.
In a separate incident, Shimano describes the ‘low-speed collision’ with an FDJ team car.
Shimano says its apologies to both Trek Factory Racing and FDJ have been accepted.
