Kirsten Wild (Argos-Shimano) sustained a fractured shoulder in a crash in the EPZ Omloop van Borsele, her team has announced. The Dutch sprinter came down in one of several pile ups in the flat, windswept race in Zeeland in the south west of the Netherlands, but still managed to finish in 20th place as part of the main peloton.
In addition to the fractured shoulder, the 30-year-old has also partially ruptured the tendon and has a lot of fluid in the joint.
Wild has been the outstanding sprinter of the season, with nine victories to date that include three stages and her third overall victory at the Tour of Qatar, Gent-Wevelgem, four stages of the Energiewacht Tour and the Ronde van Gelderland, but now faces a layoff before she can resume racing.
“This is a huge disappointment,” said Wild. “The pain is bearable but it is just impossible to lift my arm. Monday I will go to the physio and from there on we will make a plan.”
Ordinarily Wild would be the hot favourite for victory in both the Tour of Chongming Island, and the World Cup race that follows. Argos-Shimano has confirmed that the Dutch powerhouse will now be forced to miss the two Chinese races, which run from May 8th to 10th and May 12th respectively, however.
“Normally I would have a rest week after China, but now I will have it before,” said Wild. “I will try to get on the rollers next week and then hopefully I will be able to go on the training camp as planned in the middle/end of May at our team training base in Spain.”