The finishing area proves hazardous for the number three in Green Jersey standings
Following the conclusion of the sixth stage of the Tour de France in Gueugnon after 227 hot and difficult kilometers and another solid sprint to yet another fourth place finish, Robbie McEwen got yet another opportunity to say hi to his unfortunate new friend at this year's Tour de France: the pavement.
The former Green Jersey winner couldn't slow down quickly enough after the line and collided with a doping chaperone. McEwen was taken to the hospital, but first reports indicate that he did not sustain any serious injuries. McEwen is still reeling from injuries sustained on the stage to Spa a few days ago. Matters were made worse for the former Australian National Champion when he was given a tetanus shot following his crash in Spa - he later found out that he's allergic to the medicine, and suffered considerably in yesterday's stage as a result.
McEwen, sitting in third in the Green Jersey competition, only 13 points behind Hushovd, was understandably peeved following his collision with the foolish official. He commented: "The idiot just popped up in the road in front of me!" As a result of the official's positioning in the finishing area, McEwen crashed in a heap on the hot pavement and remained there for several minutes before heading to the hospital.
It was unclear what exactly was wrong as McEwen left, but his Katusha team stepped up to answer some of the mystery: "He hurt his back. He had problems with his first crash, and of course, this new wreck is very painful."
The finish line area appears to have been absolute mayhem today with the Costa - Barredo brawl and the crash of McEwen. No place is safe this year.
McEwen has had a welcomed return to the upper echelon of the world's best sprinters in 2010. Though he can only count one win to his palmares, in Mallorca in February, McEwen has strung together a solid string of top results including four fourth place finishes at the 2010 Tour de France.
The return to at least close to the sprinting form of old has been a huge success for McEwen considering the injury he suffered in 2009 to his knee at the Tour of Belgium. The injury, the successive surgeries, and the lengthy rehab all combined to scrap most of 2009.