Julian Alaphilippe has been diagnosed with multiple broken bones following his crash at Liège–Bastogne–Liège, his QuickStep Alpha Vinyl team has confirmed.
The French rider has also sustained hemo pneumothorax, which results in air becoming trapped in the chest cavity and causes the lung to collapse, as well as a broken shoulder and broken ribs.
Alaphilippe crashed off the road and did not get up, with Romain Bardet (Team DSM) opting to go and assist him rather than getting back on his bike and continuing with his race. Bardet could be seen in the TV coverage climbing down off the road to and going to Alaphilippe before gesturing for help for him.
The crash with 62km to go saw a very large number of riders fall, at high speed, while the peloton was on a slightly downhill section. Alaphilippe’s team mate Ilan Van Wilder suffered a broken jaw in the same crash.
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QuickStep Alpha Vinyl offered an update on the two riders on a very mixed day for the team as Remco Evenepoel won the race with a stunning 30km solo breakaway after using La Redoute as a launchpad.
“During the incident, Ilan has unfortunately suffered a broken jaw, in a crash that saw a mass pile-up in the middle of the peloton, 62 kilometers from the finish,” the team said.
“In the same incident, world champion Julian Alaphilippe suffered two broken ribs, a broken scapula and a hemo pneumothorax. His condition his stable, but will need to be hospitalised for observation.
“Both will travel by ambulance to Herentals for further examination and treatment. No further statement will be made at this time.”
