Unibet rider Marco Zanotti crashed 84 km from the finish of Dwars door Vlaanderen and broke his collarbone in four different places. On top of that he suffered a light fracture of the elbow. Zanotti is expected to be out of competition for four weeks.
In yesterday's race Unibet didn't get a fluent run, with also Baden Cooke hitting the deck in a crucial stage in the finale; fortunately for the Australian sprinter, he wasn't seriously injured.
T-Mobile's series of injuries continues: In Dwars door Vlaanderen, Jörg Ludewig had to be taken to the hospital after being hit by a team car. Team doctor Stefan Prettin said that x-rays showed that he had suffered a bruise to the head of his shinbone. "Jörg's swollen knee is not injured. The pain is all being caused by the bruise. Otherwise he could theoretically start training again on the rollers or even on the bike."
Gerolsteiner's Beat Zberg was also hit by a team car Wednesday, but will be able to continue in the Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali, the team announced. A team car pulled over to the side of the road and apparently did not see the oncoming cyclists when he opened his car door. "Beat couldn't avoid it and hit the door with his knee and shoulder," according to Directeur Sportif Christian Wegmann. "It all looked very dramatic, but thank God, Beat didn't have any pain overnight."
The team doctor drained the injuries Thursday morning, "and fortunately only blood came out," Zberg said. "I let him put a pressure bandage on and I will start. I don't have any pain, and maybe I will be lucky and the injuries won't swell today."
Courtesy of Sabine Sunderland & Susan Westemeyer
