Ghent-Wevelgem retires race number 192 in memory of Antoine Demoitié

Belgian rider was tragically killed in the 2016 race

Antoine Demoitié
(Image credit: kramon)

The race organisers of Ghent-Wevelgem have announced the race number 192 will be retired in memory of Antoine Demoitié, the Belgian rider who was tragically killed in the 2016 race.

According to Het Nieuwsblad, the number 192, which Demoitié was wearing on the day of the accident, will never be used again in the race, and there will also be an intermediate spring at 192km in further tribute.

The winner of the sprint will be given a trophy and a prize, but the prize money will be donated to a charity chosen by the late rider's family.

Demoitié was killed in the 2016 Ghent-Wevelgem after being hit by a motorbike following a crash, an incident that has partly contributed to current attempts to reduce the number of riders in professional races.

This isn't the first time race organisers have retired a race number after a rider's death, with the Giro d'Italia no longer using number 108 after the death of Wouter Weylandt in 2011.

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