Cian Uijtdebroeks will no longer be able to count on Robert Gesink for the remainder of the Giro. The 37-year-old Dutchman broke his hand in a fall in the opening stage between Venaria Reale and Turin and will no longer start. Visma-Lease a Bike confirmed this on Sunday morning via social media.
Gesink crashed 27 kilometers from the finish in the run-up to the Colle della Maddalena, together with the Italian Bardiani-CSF duo Filippo Fiorelli and Domenico Pozzovivo. The Dutchman swore, but afterwards got back on his bike and completed the remaining part to eventually finish 169th, almost fifteen minutes behind stage winner Jhonatan Narvaez. After the ride the damage turned out to be greater than expected.
A big setback for Gesink, who had to leave the Giro in a particularly painful way in his last year as a professional cyclist. The climber with a rather striking style is normally scheduled for the Tour of Spain later this year. In any case, his experience – Gesink has completed no fewer than 23 Grand Tours – will be missed.
Uijtdebroeks, who climbed well with the other favorites and crossed the line in fourteenth, thus loses a new pawn in his climbing train. Previously, Koen Bouwman had to miss the Giro due to illness. Hungarian champion Attila Valter and the experienced Slovenian Jan Tratnik have now been appointed to take over the role as road captain.
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