Arnaud Coyot (Caisse d’Epargne) was probably the most seriously injured victim of the crash at the end of the fourth stage of the Tour de Suisse on Tuesday. Thankfully initial rumours that he had suffered a fractured pelvis proved unfounded, but he did sustain fractures to his elbow and wrist.
Although not involved in the spectacular crash at the front of the peloton, where Mark Cavendish (HTC-Columbia) and Heinrich Haussler (Cervélo TestTeam) came together, Coyot was one of the riders in the peloton behind the incident who was unable to stop in time; most riders managed to stay upright but Coyot, and some others, came down.
The 29-year-old Frenchman underwent surgery to his humerous and scaphoid bone in hospital in Lille, France this morning. During the operation, which was declared a success, doctors inserted a screw into Coyot’s scaphoid bone; he will be able to resume training after a rest period of three weeks.
The enforced layoff will mean that Coyot will miss both the French national championships and the Tour de France.