Having previously intended to take part in the third stage of the Tour de Langkawi despite a bad crash at the end of the preceding leg, Japanese rider Yukiya Arashiro was forced to withdraw from the race on Tuesday morning.
The Europcar pro had crashed inside the final three kilometres of Monday’s stage and landed on the left side of his face. He suffered damage to his teeth as well as bad abrasions on his face, but thought that he’d be able to keep going.
However when he woke up on Tuesday, his face was very sore and he couldn’t move his neck properly. He left the race and was taken to the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, where tests were due to be made in order to assess the injury.
He had previously said that he was targeting a good ride in a breakaway on one of the stages.