Nicolas Roche happened across the scene of a Giro fan who died after hitting a wall cycling down the climb the stage finished on (Photo: www.blackumbrella.ie)
Nicolas Roche has describing cycling into the scene of an accident at the Giro d’Italia in which a fan on a bike lost his life on the way down the final climb on Sunday’s stage.
The 225 trek from Valdengo to Montecampione saw Philip Deignan go on the attack from the favourites group up the final climb while Roche was 34th, losing just over seven minutes.
The latter was cycling down the mountain with his team mates after the race to get to their hotel when their path was blocked by a crowd of spectators who had just been watching the stage go past.
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“It turned out that a cyclo-tourist had hit a wall on the way down and as he wasn't wearing a helmet had died from his injuries and a waiting helicopter had attracted onlookers to the area,” Roche said in his column today in the Irish Independent.
He added that in general on major races, one of the most dangerous parts of the day for riders was cycling back down a mountain they had just raced up in order to get to their team hotels faster than making the journey in a team vehicle.
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He said fans, motorbikes, race vehicles and riders were all vying for the same steep stretch of road and were not always going in the same direction as the race convoy and personnel were dispersing at the same time as the large crowds.
“It's not safe for anybody, especially the fans, and I think sooner or later there will have to be a new protocol for after these stages, whether that means fans will have to wait behind barriers or riders will have to find a different way down, something will have to be done.”
He also commented on the Giro performance of Irish-born Chris Juul Jensen, who is a team mate of Roche’s and is competing in his first Grand Tour.
He said Juul Jensen, who lived in Ireland and race here until he was aged 15 years, was riding strongly and confidently. He had mastered the art of doing what was asked of him by the team on each stage and then going with a reasonably paced group with a view to preserving energy rather than trying to hang on to a faster group for the sake of it.
“(He is) getting through the Giro a lot easier that I did my first Grand Tour.”
Chris Juul Jensen, born and raised in Co Wicklow, has been singled out by Roche for special praise for the way he is handling his first Grand Tour.
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