Steven Kruijswijk (LottoNL-Jumbo) saw his Vuelta a España challenge come to a painful and avoidable end on stage five when he crashed into a pole on the side of the road and landed heavily on his collarbone.
The Dutchman didn't spot the pole, which was about half a metre in from the left side of the road within the final three kilometres. He hit it while in a group of riders, bringing down and Ag2r La Mondiale man with him, but it was Kruijswijk who came off worse with a broken left collarbone.
The CPA called for more action to be taken to remove dangerous obstacles in the final kilometres of races, with the pole not even clearly marked. Geraint Thomas agreed and called on the UCI to take measures.
Bram Tankink reveals how the pole in question would be invisible to the upcoming peloton, especially for a rider in the middle of the bunch like Kruijswijk.
Koen de Kort was even at the head of a group and didn't see the offending bollard.
Peter Stetina suffered horrific leg injuries when he crashed into bollards at the end of a stage of the Tour of the Basque Country last season.
Organisers Unipublic apologised for the incident, but many have asked how such an obstacle could have been missed in the first place.
Thank you for reading 10 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
-
-
Geraint Thomas 'helps a brother out', aiding Mark Cavendish's valedictory Giro d'Italia stage win
Cavendish now has one final Giro stage win. Will he get one final Tour de France equivalent in July?
-
Charlotte Kool wins final stage of RideLondon-Classique to seal overall victory
Kool edges out Dyget and Van der Duin in bunch sprint
-
More bad news for Jumbo-Visma as Steven Kruijswijk abandons Tour de France 2021
The Dutch squad have now lost half of their riders
-
Jumbo-Visma second team to pull out of Giro d'Italia due to coronavirus
Jumbo-Visma is the second team with pull out of the Giro d'Italia due to coronavirus.
-
Steven Kruijswijk pulls out of Giro d’Italia after testing positive for coronavirus
Steven Kruijswijk has abandoned the Giro d’Italia after testing positive for coronavirus on the first rest day.
-
Steven Kruijswijk forced to miss Tour de France
Jumbo-Visma’s attempts to overthrow Team Ineos at the Tour de France have taken a blow as Steven Kruijswijk will be forced to miss the race due to injury.
-
Dutch national championships could be held abroad to attract stars like Tom Dumoulin
The Dutch national championships could be taken abroad in the hopes of attracting superstars like Tom Dumoulin and Steven Kruijswijk.
-
Simon Yates ‘very wary’ of Steven Kruijswijk as rival takes podium spot after Vuelta a España 2018 time trial
Vuelta a España leader Simon Yates says he is “very wary” of rival Steven Kruijswijk heading into the final mountain stages of the race.
-
Strava stats show the effort behind Steven Kruijswijk's Tour de France stage 12 breakaway heartbreak
Steven Kruijswijk put in a heroic ride on stage 12 of the Tour de France, going solo with more than 70km to go, but being caught in the final kilometres.
-
GC contenders hit the deck at Giro d'Italia after Fernando Gaviria misjudges corner
Steven Kruijswijk and Ilnur Zakarin were two of a number of riders to crash on stage four of the Giro d'Italia after race leader Gaviria misjudged a corner.
