Ag2R-La Mondiale rider Rinaldo Nocentini's strong early season has been derailed after he suffered a broken leg in a crash at the GP dell'Insubria-Lugano in Switzerland on Saturday.
The Italian had gone on the attack with Eros Capecchi (Footon-Servetto) on the penultimate lap of the 173-kilometre race but came down heavily on a descent. He was immediately transported across the Swiss-Italian border to hospital in Domodossola, Italy, where X-rays revealed fractures of the tibia and fibula.
Ag2R-La Mondiale confirmed the extent of Nocentini's injuries on Sunday, but were unable to indicate how long the 32-year-old will be out of competition.
It is a significant blow to what has been one of the strongest starts to his 12-year professional career. Victory on stage one of last week's Tour du Haut Var had followed second place overall at Tour Méditerranéen, behind Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne).
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