Crashes in the closing kilometers of yesterday’s first stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné cost Rabobank two of its riders. The most serious was Paul Martens who came down in a crash with 2.5km to go, landing heavily on his right side. The German domestique managed to finish the stage, and due to the position of the crash was given the same time as stage winner Grega Bole (Lampre-Farnese Vini), but was taken to hospital in Valence.
Martens was diagnosed with three broken ribs and, more seriously, a tear to his right kidney. He will need to stay in hospital for two or three days for observation and recovery is expected to take a few weeks.
The Rabobank team was one that was affected most in the big crash at around 15km to go. It brought down Koos Moerenhout, Maarten Tjallingii, Sebastian Langeveld and Dennis Van Winden. Van Winden complained immediately of pain in his hand; he struggled to the finish in a small group, 11’56” behind Bole, but went to hospital along with Martens and didn’t take the start of stage 2.
Langeveld also complained of knee pain following the crash but started the stage today.
Neither of the two injured riders is on the team’s roster for next month’s Tour de France; team leader Denis Menchov was one of only two members of the orange team that didn’t crash, although he did find himself caught behind a split and lost 1’11”.