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UPDATE: Video - Cavendish in horror crash as Nibali wins Milan-Sanremo

First Italian win in the race since 2006 - Cav escapes serious injury after hitting bollard

Mark Cavendish suffered another horrific crash during today’s Milan-Sanremo, flipping over after hitting a bollard with just under 10km to go. Vincenzo Nibali later became the first Italian winner of the race since Filippo Pozzato in 2006 after a thrilling finish.

The nastiness of the crash which ended the Manx Missile's race was such that a broken rib, multiple abrasions, and a an ankle ligament injury probably counts as a relatively lucky escape. 

Earlier this season Cavendish pulled out of the Abu Dhabi Tour after he was concussed and sustained whiplash in a fall during the race's first stage. He had also recently sustained a broken rib after crashing on stage one of Tirreno-Adriatico.

Team Dimension-Data later tweeted that he was being assessed by a medical team and said more information would be provided when it became available. The team duly released a medical update later on Saturday night confirming that while had escaped serious injury he certainly hadn't emerged from the incident unscathed having sustained  "a new rib fracture (5th) on the same side as the one that he damaged in the opening stage of Tirreno-Adriatico (7th).

"He also has bruising and abrasions consistent with the scale of the crash as well as a possible 'ligamentous ankle injury' that will require further assessment once he returns home on Saturday."

The team would like to extend a big thanks to everybody who has sent messages of concern; and we will keep you updated as and when, should additional information become available.

Nibali, who had closed last season with victory in the Tour of Lombardy, another of cycling's Monuments, successfully held off the peloton for a narrow win after attacking on the Poggio.

Speaking shortly after the finish, Nibali said: “I have to thank the team, who rode perfectly. I was able to hide in the group with Colbrelli, keeping an eye out and staying out of the wind. I attacked, but when my DS told me I had a 20 second lead, I was surprised and I knew I just had to ride. When I looked over my shoulder and saw the sprinters could not catch me, it was a good moment for me, but it is too early to say if it is the best win of my career."

Caleb Ewan finished second ahead of Arnaud Démare.

Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.

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18 comments

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alansmurphy | 6 years ago
11 likes

As a pro racer I have to let you know that when Eurosport show me the replays I know I could have avoided it. I also say Nibbles make the break and I'd have been right on his wheel, Sags wouldn't have rainbow bands and Froomey, well I'd just outspin him and out TT him every time. I'm awesome!

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Rapha Nadal replied to alansmurphy | 6 years ago
1 like

alansmurphy wrote:

As a pro racer I have to let you know that when Eurosport show me the replays I know I could have avoided it. I also say Nibbles make the break and I'd have been right on his wheel, Sags wouldn't have rainbow bands and Froomey, well I'd just outspin him and out TT him every time. I'm awesome!

I just had a look at your palmares.  Very, very impressive!

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Cozz | 6 years ago
0 likes

half arsed organisation. planning was interupted by lunch.

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Yrcm | 6 years ago
4 likes

They'd just passed one bollard, which was marshalled, but there was no warning on this one. Think Cav may have been unsighted by the rider in front, who swerved to avoid it at the last moment. Very surprised something as nasty as this wasn't guarded even if it was just after another one, think the organisers dropped the ball with this.

He's certainly having a bad run of luck.

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Rapha Nadal | 6 years ago
4 likes

Bizarre that the hazard wasn't being marshalled.

LOL @ BTBS as always.

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BehindTheBikesheds replied to Rapha Nadal | 6 years ago
0 likes
Rapha Nadal wrote:

Bizarre that the hazard wasn't being marshalled.

LOL @ BTBS as always.

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Grahamd | 6 years ago
1 like

I blame the organisers, they should follow the example of the TDF and have police motorcyclists waving a protective flag for such obstacles.

 

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BehindTheBikesheds | 6 years ago
1 like

What a terrible mistake in judgement, had a clear line to get past and simply rode straight into it trying to get onto a group that had splayed off.

He will look at that and think how much of a total berk he is, or he should do, it's like when Ritchey Porte totally misread the line on that descent in the TdF and crashed (taking out Dan Martin too), totally down to the rider and no-one else no restricted view no poor weather etc.

Hope he can get his mojo back though and win something

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gonedownhill replied to BehindTheBikesheds | 6 years ago
21 likes
BehindTheBikesheds wrote:

What a terrible mistake in judgement, had a clear line to get past and simply rode straight into it trying to get onto a group that had splayed off.

He will look at that and think how much of a total berk he is, or he should do, it's like when Ritchey Porte totally misread the line on that descent in the TdF and crashed (taking out Dan Martin too), totally down to the rider and no-one else no restricted view no poor weather etc.

Hope he can get his mojo back though and win something

He's bound to improve with the thousands of blokes on the internet giving him advice on professional bike racing.

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BehindTheBikesheds replied to gonedownhill | 6 years ago
0 likes
gonedownhill wrote:
BehindTheBikesheds wrote:

What a terrible mistake in judgement, had a clear line to get past and simply rode straight into it trying to get onto a group that had splayed off.

He will look at that and think how much of a total berk he is, or he should do, it's like when Ritchey Porte totally misread the line on that descent in the TdF and crashed (taking out Dan Martin too), totally down to the rider and no-one else no restricted view no poor weather etc.

Hope he can get his mojo back though and win something

He's bound to improve with the thousands of blokes on the internet giving him advice on professional bike racing.

hahahaha, so the fact Cav or any rider for that matter made a big error in judgement cannot be talked about now?

How you think my comment has anything to do with him improving or how he rides is bizarre in the extreme, I've not given him any advice, merely comment on what happened. As it happens I'm a big fan but riders who make such critical errors when there's no other factors involved stand out.

Pathetic and seemingly lots of other sad cases who can't accept that Cav made a mistake that had a horrible outcome for him and feel that making a comment about it is unacceptable, how fucking sad are you!

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PaulBox replied to BehindTheBikesheds | 6 years ago
3 likes
BehindTheBikesheds wrote:
gonedownhill wrote:
BehindTheBikesheds wrote:

What a terrible mistake in judgement, had a clear line to get past and simply rode straight into it trying to get onto a group that had splayed off.

He will look at that and think how much of a total berk he is, or he should do, it's like when Ritchey Porte totally misread the line on that descent in the TdF and crashed (taking out Dan Martin too), totally down to the rider and no-one else no restricted view no poor weather etc.

Hope he can get his mojo back though and win something

He's bound to improve with the thousands of blokes on the internet giving him advice on professional bike racing.

hahahaha, so the fact Cav or any rider for that matter made a big error in judgement cannot be talked about now?

How you think my comment has anything to do with him improving or how he rides is bizarre in the extreme, I've not given him any advice, merely comment on what happened. As it happens I'm a big fan but riders who make such critical errors when there's no other factors involved stand out.

Pathetic and seemingly lots of other sad cases who can't accept that Cav made a mistake that had a horrible outcome for him and feel that making a comment about it is unacceptable, how fucking sad are you!

I think we all know that Cav made a mistake, I'm sure that the man himself is not laying in his bed today thinking that he didn't put a wheel wrong...

It's just that you sound like a sanctimonious prick.

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Zebulebu replied to BehindTheBikesheds | 6 years ago
2 likes
BehindTheBikesheds wrote:

What a terrible mistake in judgement, had a clear line to get past and simply rode straight into it trying to get onto a group that had splayed off.

He will look at that and think how much of a total berk he is, or he should do, it's like when Ritchey Porte totally misread the line on that descent in the TdF and crashed (taking out Dan Martin too), totally down to the rider and no-one else no restricted view no poor weather etc.

Hope he can get his mojo back though and win something

Raced much? He was unsighted by the rider directly in front of him, and hit the bollard at about 55k/h. There is precisely fuck all you can do about that - in fact, he was lucky to have hit it as full on as he did, because the flip probably saved him from very serious (potentially life and certainly career-threatening) injury

Some of his manoeuvres in the past have been risky - and dangerous. He's even gone over the line on more than one occasion. But without wanting to sound supercilious here, anyone who's ever raced will tell you that there is nothing he could have done to prevent this

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fenix | 6 years ago
0 likes

Amazing that he got off with such little injury. A new rib fracture and a possible ankle injury - he's a tough little bugger.

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Beecho | 6 years ago
0 likes

Mama Mia. (Repeat)

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scooterjinx | 6 years ago
0 likes

Great finish  by Nibali

was gutted when I saw cav flying through the air, hopefully just winded, nice somersault tho

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don simon fbpe | 6 years ago
0 likes

Hopefully his time on the ground was due to his pissedoffedness at being on the ground again and that the injuries aren't too serious.

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1961BikiE | 6 years ago
1 like

Someone's got it in for Cav this year. Hope he's ok, he was riding with a broken rib.

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1961BikiE | 6 years ago
0 likes

Someone's got it information CA this year. Hope he's ok, he was riding with a broken rib.

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