Lucky escape for Geraint Thomas, not so for Andrey Zeits
Team Ineos confirm, following further examinations that Thomas only suffered superficial injuries
"There was a lip in the road that came out of nowhere," explained Thomas, "An Astana rider hit the lip and crashed and I had nowhere to go. I landed on my shoulder and my face and there was quite a bit of blood. You’ve always got to be cautious with a head injury, and whilst I was keen to carry on, the doctors made the right decision to pull me out of the race."
Despite the bruises and abrasions, this crash isn't likely to affect his Tour de France participation. "Clearly it’s frustrating and a small setback for my Tour de France preparations, but there’s still plenty of time before we start in Brussels in a few weeks’ time," Thomas commented. "We will recalibrate and I’m sure my coach Tim (Kerrison) will have a plan in place to ensure I’m ready for July 6th."
Team Ineos doctor Derick Macleod explained further on Thomas' situation. "Geraint took a heavy fall," he commented. "The main area of impact was to his head. He passed his initial concussion roadside test but with the nature and severity of the impact, it was felt unsafe for him to continue in the race. He was taken to hospital and thankfully all the X-rays and scans have come back clear. He’s now back in the Team hotel and in good spirits.”
"He’s been given the all clear which is great but we will continue to monitor him over the next few days. Knowing Geraint, it won’t take him long to get back on his bike but we’ll need to ensure he’s symptom-free in the next few days before he does so. We’re optimistic he’ll make a full recovery over the coming days though and all being well he’ll be back on his bike very soon."
Thomas concluded, "Thanks for all your messages!! Gutted to leave Tour de Suisse but luckily I’m all ok. I hit my head and needed stitches above my eye, so the doctors stopped me getting back on my bike. It just means I’ll need some big training rides next week now!"
Andrey Zeits suffers Collarbone and Rib Fractures
Astana's Andrey Zeits and Omar Fraile were also brought down in the same crash tas Geraint Thomas -with around 30 kilometres to go. Zeits was taken to the hospital while Fraile got back to the bike and managed to finish the fourth stage. Fraile suffered multiple abrasions on the left part of his body and on his right elbow and is expected to continue in the race,
However, Zeits was diagnosed with a complex fracture of the left collarbone as well as a superficial fracture of the fifth rib. The rider also suffered multiple abrasions and bruises, "Andrey Zeits will have surgery in the hospital of Dornach and will stay there under medical control for a few more days," said Astana in a statement.