Wout van Aert has crashed out of the Vuelta a España after spending two weeks as one of the most animated riders on the race.
The Visma-Lease a Bike rider fell on the damp descent of the penultimate climb on Tuesday's stage 16 to Lagos de Covadonga, sliding out on a slow left-hand bend and crashing into the rocky edge of the road.
He was one of three riders to fall in the slippery conditions.
The 29-year-old Belgian was left with nasty cuts to his right-hand elbow and in particular his right-hand knee, both of which streamed with blood as he sat in the back of his team car, wincing as the race doctor tended to his wounds.
He had initially tried to continue on the bike after the fall, but had to pull up.
His next focus after the Vuelta will be the World Championship in Zurich, Switzerland on September 29. What this crash means for his hopes there remains to be seen.
Van Aert was riding in the front group on the mountain stage from Luanco to Lagos de Covadonga, having been one of the first attackers of the day, and even attacking off the front once the early break had swollen to more than 10 riders.
He has spent much of the race riding off the front or in the breaks, and has had, up to today at least, an incredibly successful Vuelta. He won three stages and took four further podium finishes, as well as wearing the green points jersey for much of the race.
His first stage win came on stage three, in a full-field bunch sprint into Castelo Blanco. Four days later at Cordoba on stage seven Van Aert struck again, this time sprinting home at the head of large leading group. His hat-trick stage was a different kettle of fish, coming at the end of the mountainous stage 10 at Baiona, where Van Aert outsprinted breakaway partner Quentin Pacher of Groupama-FDJ.
Van Aert could rightly feel as though he has had his fair share of bad luck and crashes this season. He crashed out of Dwars Door Vlaanderen in March with serious injuries just as he was getting set to take on the season's biggest Classics.
He rode back into form at the Tour de France to win bronze in the time trial at the Paris Olympic Games. This Vuelta he has looked back at his best, but sadly now he has retired once again to lick his wounds.
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