Vuelta a España: Pogacar forced to withdraw following a crash
The Slovenian champion, who had been dominating the Vuelta, was taken to hospital by ambulance. Initial examinations suggest he has fractured his collarbone.
A bitter ending, marred by bad luck – the only thing that can beat him. A dramatic twist in the Vuelta a España: following a minor crash some 35 kilometres from the finish of the eighth stage, Tadej Pogacar was forced to withdraw.
The Slovenian champion, who had been dominating the Vuelta after having already won the Giro d’Italia once and the Tour de France five times, was taken to hospital by ambulance due to injuries to his left shoulder. Initial examinations suggest it is a fractured collarbone. Pogacar tried to get back on his feet but, due to injuries to his left arm as well, he chose to withdraw from the race, visibly in pain.
This is the first time Tadej has withdrawn from a stage race, and what’s more, it comes during a season in which he has dominated, winning every race he has entered (Milan–San Remo, Flanders, Liège, Romandie, Switzerland, Tour de France). Only at Paris–Roubaix had he been beaten in a sprint finish by Wout Van Aert. And in this Vuelta, he had been in the lead from the very first stage. That, too, would have been a record.
Depending on the severity of the injury, Pogacar will decide whether or not to finish the season, which also includes the World Championships (the Slovenian is the current world champion), the European Championships and the Giro di Lombardia.
As a gesture of solidarity following what had happened to him, at the end of the stage the new leader, the Spaniard Enric Mas, chose not to wear the red jersey
