Najhoršie dopadli Jan Bakelants a Simone Petilli. https://t.co/prscHeUjrp pic.twitter.com/KdG5NJcnDU
— Denník SME (@denniksme) October 8, 2017
There were fractured spins for two riders, as well as multiple fractures elsewhere, where four riders crashed over the edge of the road and into the same ravine in separate incidents.
Four Lombardy crashes on Muro di Sormano descent
The Tour of Lombardy crash involving Laurens De Plus (QuickStep) flying over the edge of the road was horrific looking.
Incredibly he escaped without serious injury. But other riders to crash into the same ravine were not so lucky.
Simone Petilli (UAE Team Emirates), Jan Bakelants (AG2R La Mondiale) and Daniel Martinez (Wilier Triestina) all came a cropper on the descent of the Muro di Sormano with 50km remaining.
The reason only De Plus’s smash was captured on TV was because he was at the front of the race at the time.
He and Martinez were least injured of the four. Indeed, it has been confirmed that Martinez emerged so unscathed he will ride the Tour of Turkey next week.
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De Plus was taken to hospital but he had nothing more than soft tissue injuries to his right knee.
And he was discharged from hospital in Cantù after being checked out.
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The sight of the crash was surreal: @Jan_Bakelants bike was dangling almost 4 meters up in a tree with him underneath… horrible #IlLombardia pic.twitter.com/Z4VNNmBfm3
— kristof ramon (@kristoframon) October 7, 2017
At the most horrific moment in my career there was also this HUGE sigh of relief when @LaurensDePlus gave me a ?? #IlLombardia pic.twitter.com/SYDApvhLFR
— kristof ramon (@kristoframon) October 7, 2017
Bakelants appears to have fallen furthest into the ravine. He was taken to hospital in Como, where the race ends.
His bike was left hanging in a tree and his injuries will take quite a bit of time to recover from.
The medic with his team, Dr Eric Bouvat, outlined the full extent of the injuries sustained by Bakelants.
"After an x-ray and CT scan, the following injuries have been detected: seven rib fractures, though without any impact on the lungs,” he said in a team statement.
“A compression-fracture of the first lumbar vertebra and the third lumbar vertebra. The latter will require additional examination. An MRI will be carried out tomorrow."
For his part, Petilli sustained head injuries. As a result he was kept in hospital in Varese overnight as he suffered concussion.
But that was only part of his problem, as his team outlined in a statement.
“He suffered a concussion and a fracture of the right occipital condyle,” it said.
“(He also suffered) a fracture of the right tranverse process of the D1 vertebra, a broken right collarbone and a broken right shoulder blade. In addition (he has) wounds near the right eye.”
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