For at least two professional cyclists, the Tour de France ended prematurely after the falls shortly before the finish of the fourth stage. Spaniard Luis Leon Sanchez suffered a fracture of his left collarbone and will return to Spain this Wednesday, according to his team Astana Qazasqstan. The 39-year-old will undergo an operation there, his team announced on Tuesday evening.
Jakobsen can probably continue
According to his lottery team, the Italian Jacopo Guarnieri cannot continue the tour either. In addition to his broken collarbone, the 35-year-old also suffered minor fractures to three ribs and abrasions to the skin. He is also scheduled for surgery this week. Guarnieri is the starter for the Australian Caleb Ewen, who finished second in the sprint stage in Nogaro on Tuesday.
Dutch European champion Fabio Jakobsen also fell in one of the three falls at the end of the stage. The 27-year-old suffered skin abrasions, but was still able to roll to the finish. This Wednesday (1.05 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Tour de France, on ARD and on Eurosport) the rankings start in the fifth stage.
Meanwhile, German professional cyclist Phil Bauhaus (Bocholt/Team Bahrain Victorious) was penalized three times after his third place in the mass sprint of stage four. The 28-year-old has to pay a fine of 500 Swiss francs (511 euros) for disabling another driver, and all 50 classification points for the green jersey of the best sprinter will be deducted. In addition, he receives a 30-second time penalty for the overall ranking.
Published/Updated: John Degenkolb Published/Updated: Recommendations: 7 Published/Updated: Recommendations: 3
According to the tour management, Bauhaus illegally blocked the way of a competitor 1.8 kilometers before the finish of the stage between Dax and Nogaro on Tuesday on the Circuit Paul Armagnac motorsport course. Bauhaus sprinted across the line in third place behind stage winner Jasper Philipsen (Belgium/Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Australia’s Ewan (Lotto Dstny). Bauhaus was not pushed back.
