Andrea Tonti (Quickstep-Innergetic) ended his 2007 Giro d'Italia with a fractured nose. "In the first stage everyone wants to win because afterwards you will be good for the next twenty days," said World Champion Paolo Bettini to La Gazzetta dello Sport in regards to the Giro's first road stage.
In the rush to the line in Bosa his teammate Tonti hit the deck at 1300 metres to go, a crashed that also involved Manuele Mori (Saunier Duval-Prodir), Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas), Franco Pellizotti (Liquigas) and Tim Klinger (Gerolsteiner).
Tonti was talking to the hospital in Bosa and then transferred to Nuoro so that a CAT scan could be performed.
"I was on the roadside. The barriers slightly came into the road and I could not avoid them," summarized the 31 year-old Italian.
This morning he will travel back to his home in Osimo (Le Marche).
The crash also took out Saunier Duval's Manuele Mori. Although it looked quite dramatic, Mori received only minor injuries to his face and hand, and was able to finish the stage, according to his team. He is expected to be at the start again today.
