Fernando Gaviria out of Milan-San Remo with broken hand
Crash at Tirreno-Adriatico rules Colombian out of Spring Classics campaign
Fernando Gaviria has been ruled out of Saturday's Milan-San Remo after braking his hand on Stage 6 of Tirreno-Adriatico. The Quick-Step Floors riders will require surgery to his hand which will likely prevent him from riding for four weeks, subsequently ruling him out of the Spring Classics.
With 8km remaining, a lack of concentration saw Gaviria cross wheels with teammate and lead out man Max Richeze causing him to crash hard taking down around a dozen riders in the process.
Gaviria managed to remount his bike and finish the stage despite a large abrasion to his left leg. After the race, the 23-year-old was admitted to hospital in which x-rays proved he had in fact broken his metacarpal.
This will be devastating news for Gaviria who was regarded as a hot favourite for this Saturday's Milan-San Remo behind Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe).
Sagan was also involved in the crash, siting directly on the wheel of Gaviria, yet miraculously managed to stay upright, finishing second on the stage.
Gaviria's crash will cause a headache for his Belgian WorldTour squad but not spell disaster as the team will be able to fall back on last year's podium finisher Julian Alaphilippe and an ultra-motivated Philippe Gilbert.
Milan-San Remo is the first Monument of the year taking place on Saturday 17th March.
