Dan Martin hospitalised after late crash on Vuelta stage 7; unclear if he will continue

Not a sight anyone wants to see for any rider, but especially when it comes to our own Dan Martin. One of the best riders in the world, he had a crash late in today’s stage but hopefully he is OK and can continue in this race; fingers crossed for him.

By Gavin McLoughlin

Dan Martin was taken to hospital after crashing with 11 kilometres remaining on stage 7 of the Vuelta a Espana today, Friday.

The Garmin-Sharp leader came down heavily after hitting a pothole, but was able to re-mount his bicycle and finish the stage. With teammates Johan van Summeren and Alex Howes assisting him, Martin eventually arrived home 1:33 after stage-winner Zdenek Stybar (Omega Pharma-Quick Step).

At the time of writing it remains to be seen whether he will be able to continue in the race.

Any serious injury would be a bitter blow as Martin is one of the favourites to take stage honours - possibly more than once - over the next two weeks and also challenge for the Vuelta podium and climbers' jersey. He is also one of the favourites for the World Road Race Championships in Florence next month and it would a massive loss if he could not compete, or saw his preparations interrupted.

Nicolas Roche had a luckier time of it today and finished alongside the overall favourites. The Saxo-Tinkoff rider kept hold of the lead in the mountains and combined classifications, and remains third overall at 8 seconds behind race-leader Vincenzo Nibali of Astana.

Roche will be severely tested tomorrow as stage 8 concludes atop the first-category Alto de Peñas Blancas. The Irishman was a superb winner on the last first-category summit finish, and his performance tomorrow will say much about his general classification prospects.

The Saxo-Tinkoff rider is certain to be a marked man, so every scrap of his strength and shrewdness will be required if Roche is to deliver another stage win.

As for Martin, his prospects will depend entirely on his condition, though if he is cleared to start tomorrow and is fit he will still be one of the most feared riders for the remainder of the race.

A 206 kilometre trek from Almendralejo to Mairena de Aljarafe presented itself to the riders today, and the early breakaway consisted of three riders: Francisco Aramendia (Caja Rural), Christian Knees (Sky) and Marco Pinotti (BMC).

On the day after Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) came breathtakingly close to thwarting the quick men, it seemed inconceivable that the peloton would allow a breakaway to succeed.

At one early point the leaders’ advantage extended over 7 minutes, but thereafter the sprinters’ teams took turns on the front of the bunch and kept the situation well under control.

There was a relaxed atmosphere in the bunch for much of the stage as most tried to conserve energy for the savage days ahead. Dan Martin was pictured chatting amiably to Belkin leader Bauke Mollema, the contented Irishman having no idea of the calamity that lay ahead.

Just as an Orica-Green Edge-led peloton was about to catch the breakaway men with 17 kilometres left, time-trial specialist Pinotti half-heartedly tried to emulate Tony Martin’s brilliant performance of yesterday. The Italian jumped away from his breakaway companions but did not last long out front.

And then there came the scary shot of Martin lying on the ground, about 11 kilometres from home. His face contorted in pain, his elbow grazed and his jersey torn at the shoulder, the Irishman looked to have taken a significant blow.

Nevertheless, Martin was able to get up and onto a new bicycle. After pointing out the cause of the accident to his mechanic, Martin set off gingerly with Van Summeren and Howes alongside him.

The timing of the fall could not have been worse as up front the pace was electric. 10 kilometres remained and World Champion Philippe Gilbert (BMC) decided to roll the dice, darting up the road with the multi-talented Zdenek Stybar (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) for company. The move looked a long shot, but amazingly the pack failed yet again to organise themselves effectively.

With 3 kilometres to go, the leading duo’s gap was 12 seconds, and with 2 kilometres remaining it was 17 seconds. Panic set in behind as rider after rider streamed out of the front of the bunch, desperately trying to hunt the Belgian and Czech pair down.

The chasers were bearing down fast and Stybar was forced to take up the sprint with 200 metres to go. Gilbert slotted into his wheel and looked a clear favourite, but somehow the Czech managed to sustain enough power and he was able to take the victory at the line by a hair’s breadth.

@gavmcloughlin