A motorcycle parked on the racecourse at the Giro d'Italia has wreaked havoc on the race and sent several riders crashing to the ground.
A police motorcycle parked on the racecourse at the Giro d'Italia wreaked havoc on Sunday's stage 9, sending several riders crashing to the ground.
In the GIF below, you can see the peloton racing along as it comes up on the motorbike parked on the left side of the road:
Normally the race motorbikes park off the side of the road, not on it, so the riders, who are racing closely together at high speed, would not have expected to find a motorbike on the racecourse.
A clip, then a big crash
With less than 15 kilometers to go, the peloton had been racing at high speed toward the big finishing climb of the day at Blockhaus, among the hardest ascents of the three-week race. It was the most important stage of the race so far, with the general-classification riders all looking at one another to see who might attack and go for the race lead.
Then Wilco Kelderman of the Sunweb team clipped the parked motorbike and went down with a number of other riders, many from Team Sky. Kelderman broke his finger and was to have X-rays.
Update: Kelderman had to quit the Giro because of his injuries.
The biggest names in the crash were top favorites Geraint Thomas and Mikel Landa of Sky.
Adam Yates of Orica-Scott, another favorite, also went down.
It's unclear why the motorbike driver had parked on the racecourse instead of pulling off the road.
TV commentator Daniel Lloyd was among many who expressed frustration over the incident, pointing out the "stupidity" of it.
"The influence motor vehicles have on pro bike racing is ridiculous. I don't know what the answer is but it needs sorting," Lloyd wrote on Twitter.
Here's a longer look at the incident:
Here's a slo-mo:
Sky appeared most affected, with several of its riders crashing. Thomas and Landa had been seen as contenders for the final podium. Thomas finished over 5 minutes down on stage winner Nairo Quintana (Movistar), the new leader of the race.
"Someone hits motorbike in front of me, nowhere to go but down," Thomas said.
"I got back on, I got to the finish, but I knew deep down there was no coming back from that," he added. "I was on the floor for quite a while and then waiting to get a bike and everything. It was just a shame because that shouldn’t happen."
Another race, another motorbike incident
There have been several crashes involving motorbikes in pro cycling.
It is clear that race organizers still have not figured out a way to ensure the athletes' safety from race vehicles and motorbikes 100%.
Antoine Demoitié died after being hit by a motorbike at Gent-Wevelgem in 2016.
At the 2015 Tour of Flanders, the driver of a support vehicle stuck Jesse Sergent and sent him crashing.
The driver of a medical motorcycle struck Stig Broeckx at the 2016 Kurne-Brussels-Kurne.
Last year, Tour de France champion Chris Froome was caught up in a dramatic crash when a rider in front of him hit a race motorbike that was in the way.
In the 2011 Tour de France, a French television car crashed into riders, sending one of them flying into barbed wire:
At the 2015 Tour of Spain, cycling star Peter Sagan was struck by the driver of a race motorbike.
The manager of the American Cannondale-Drapac team, Jonathan Vaughters, last year addressed the need for increased safety for the riders on Business Insider, writing:
"Another bike race, another problem. The recent spate of terrifying accidents in professional cycling ... has incited fans, athletes, and coaches to carefully consider how pro cycling is conducted and how it could be improved."
Criticism of Sunday's Giro incident came swiftly on social media:
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A motorcycle parked on the racecourse at the Giro d'Italia has wreaked havoc on the race and sent several riders crashing to the ground. Read Full Story
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