Aleksandr Vlasov will not be mounting his bike for the Tour de France on Tuesday. The climber from Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe suffered a broken ankle during his crash on Sunday, which, unsurprisingly, renders him unable to continue in the Tour. Vlasov fell during the final phase of Sunday's gravel stage at an unnecessary moment. The eleventh-ranked rider in the GC wasn't paying attention, veered off the road, and ended up in the grass beside the road. He managed to complete the stage and even finished with the other classification riders in the peloton, without losing any time.
Afterwards, there was considerable concern about the footage that emerged of Vlasov, as he was visibly groggy and yet put back on his bike. With a bloody neck and elbow, he continued on, but it was the ankle that caused the most worry at Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe.
Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe loses its shadow leader with Vlasov
Vlasov limped off his bike and underwent further examinations on Monday, which confirmed that he had sustained a fracture to his ankle. Therefore, continuing to ride is not an option, and thus Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe loses its shadow leader and most important support rider for team leader Primoz Roglic before reaching the real mountains.
The German team had already expressed dissatisfaction both before and after the stage around Troyes about incorporating gravel sections into the Tour de France, but it should be noted that Vlasov's crash occurred on an asphalt road.
Vlasov is the fourth withdrawal in this Tour de France, following Michele Gazzoli (Astana), Casper Pedersen (Soudal Quick-Step), and Mads Pedersen of Lidl-Trek. It is unclear how long he will be sidelined with his ankle injury.
New footage emerges of Vlasov, concerns and disbelief at his wrecked bike
The Tour continues Tuesday with a flat stage, and in the lead-up to the start of the tenth stage, there is astonishment in the cycling world about the condition of Vlasov's bike.
New images on X show how damaged the Russian's iron stallion was after the fall on Sunday. The entire frame of the bike broke off during the fall, which happened in the verge. Vlasov himself shared the photo on Instagram.
That was not all. The saddle was also missing, and the frame itself had large cracks. Is this then the result of a fall with a very light bike? This raises quite a few questions... "So this is the result of falling in the grass. Just imagine if this bike had made contact with asphalt," is one of the telling reactions on social media.