Primoz Roglic grabbed a few seconds from Remco Evenepoel by attacking not far from the finish, but he fell a few dozen meters from the line. “We have to hope the damage isn’t too bad,” sporting director Addy Engels told the team’s website.
“We had planned to do something in the latter part of this race. We knew this stage was made for Primoz. At the start, we were aiming for a stage victory, but the associated time savings were just as important for us. The plan went as planned, until Primoz fell victim to pure bad luck in the final meters.”
Engels refers to the fall of the Slovenian. “Primoz finished very strong. He was on track to gain time over all his direct competitors. We didn’t even notice that Evenepoel had stopped when Primoz made his effort. Looking back, we’re not so happy about it. Primoz managed to save time, but had to pay for it with a huge crash. He’s hurt, that’s for sure. It is to be hoped that the damage is not too great and that he will be able to continue his fight. The eight-second time saved is obviously not worth the injuries to his body.”
Roglic was checked and treated by Vuelta medical staff immediately after the stage and further treatment will be monitored by the team doctor. The severity of his injuries is not yet known.
