Roglic abandons Giro d'Italia after latest crash
Primoz Roglic was forced to abandon the Giro d'Italia on Tuesday, ending a troubled fortnight for one of the pre-race favourites on the Grand Tour.
Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe leader Roglic left the three-week Italian race after being caught in a crash alongside Richard Carapaz, who was able to continue, during the punishing 16th stage, organisers said.
A five-time Grand Tour champion including the 2023 Giro, Roglic had already crashed three times in this year's edition, including in a mass pile up towards the end of stage 14.
Roglic was three minutes and 53 seconds behind overall leader Isaac Del Toro before deciding to start Tuesday's 203km push from Piazzola sul Brenta to San Valentino, which features around 4,700 metres of climbing including three category one ascents.
The 35-year-old had been one of the men to watch ahead of this year's race but was left way off the pace after losing 90 seconds during the previous stage on Sunday.
"I don't really think it's realistic anymore to do the overall standings, I'm obviously fighting for survival," said Roglic before the stage.
"I still came to the start today and I couldn't even ride the bike yesterday, so I'll just see if I can ride."
Tuesday's withdrawal is another major disappointment for veteran Roglic, who has had a quiet season so far apart from victory in the Tour of Catalonia in March.
It is the fifth time in his last nine Grand Tours he has failed to finish the race.
Two other riders were forced to withdraw on Tuesday, with Ineos' Joshua Tarling out after hitting a guardrail.
More worrying was Italian Alessio Martinelli who plunged into a ravine after sliding off course during a descent.
Martinelli's team Bardiani said the 24-year-old was conscious when he was taken away by ambulance and was in "stable" condition.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
IOL News
a day ago
- IOL News
8th World Title seems out of grasp for Hamilton this season amid Ferrari woes
Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton exits his car at his garage as he is yet to hit strides since joining Ferrari. | AFP Based on an Italian's perspective on Ferrari, if you cannot win a Formula 1 race in the Prancing Horse, then 'you're an idiot'. But how can that be if a seven-time World Champion is behind the wheel? Perhaps the once revered Italian car manufacturer has lost its magic touch…and F1 prowess along with it. We're nine races deep into the 2025 season, the year when Sir Lewis Hamilton was touted to take home his eighth World Title according to Ferrari, but still, fans only saw a glimmer of greatness in China. It was common knowledge that Hamilton would take some time to adjust to life in red, which also includes acclimatising himself to a new car and more especially a new team. Coming out of his relationship in Mercedes, where Toto Wolff took him as a son, Hamilton found himself surrounded by new engineers and a new voice whispering in his ear during races. A bit of the animosity within the Ferrari camp bubbled to the surface at the Miami Grand Prix, after verbal exchange between Hamilton and his engineer Riccardo Adami grew extremely tense during the dying stages of the race that eventually cost Hamilton time.
TimesLIVE
2 days ago
- TimesLIVE
Red Bull's Arvid Lindblad granted F1 licence ahead of 18th birthday
Formula One's governing body has granted Red Bull junior driver Arvid Lindblad a super licence ahead of his 18th birthday in August after the team requested a dispensation. F1 rules say drivers must be over 18, a measure introduced after Red Bull's now four-times world champion Max Verstappen was signed by Toro Rosso at 16 and made his race debut at 17 in 2015. Lindblad, born in Britain to a Swedish father and mother of Indian heritage, is seen as a hot prospect and the exemption will allow him to take part in F1 practice ahead of the August break. He has been tipped for an eventual seat at Racing Bulls, Red Bull's Italy-based sister team which currently have Frenchman Isack Hadjar and New Zealand's Liam Lawson. Hadjar has impressed in his rookie season, with speculation he could be next to move up to the senior team alongside Verstappen if Yuki Tsunoda is not retained. Verstappen is also only a penalty point away from a one-race ban, meaning Red Bull need to be prepared to shuffle around drivers. Lindblad, third overall in the Formula Two championship, already has enough points for a super licence, with age his only barrier. The governing FIA's World Motor Sport Council, granting the request at a meeting in Macau, said Lindblad had 'recently and consistently demonstrated outstanding ability and maturity in single-seater formula car competition'. Mercedes were in a similar position with Kimi Antonelli last year but waited until he was 18, also in August, before giving him a practice debut. The Italian this season took the seat vacated by seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton.
IOL News
2 days ago
- IOL News
Wilco Louw one of three reasons Bulls can upset Leinster in URC final
Wilco Louw has been in outstanding form for the Bulls, and has been rewarded with a Springbok call-up. Photo: BackpagePix Image: BackpagePix The Bulls are outright underdogs for Saturday's United Rugby Championship final against Leinster in Dublin (6pm SA time start) – but that doesn't mean that Jake White's team have no chance. In fact, here are three factors that are actually in the Bulls' favour to cause an almighty upset at Croke Park... 1 Andrea Piardi as the referee At first, you might think that Italian official Andrea Piardi's appointment as the final referee on Tuesday – his third title decider in a row – might work against the Bulls. The 32-year-old was the man in charge in last season's 21-16 victory for Glasgow Warriors at Loftus Versfeld – and Munster's win over the Stormers in Cape Town in 2023 – and White was unhappy with some of his decisions. 'It's twice in a row now where the referees (Piardi) let the away side win,' White said afterwards. 'In fact, it's three times – last year, Munster won in Cape Town, Glasgow won in Munster, we won in Leinster, and this referee let the away team win. So maybe, next year I'll ask when we play away, that I want him to try and ref us!' So, while match officials try to be objective, there is no doubt that the home crowd does have an influence in a match as big as a final. Normally the hosts would be on the right side of a few tight calls, but it seems it's the opposite with Piardi. White's words about last year's final defeat will surely be in the Italian's head, and he will be keen to ensure that it's a fair contest and that Leinster aren't getting any undue rewards. 2 Props with a point to prove Bulls props Jan-Hendrik Wessels and Wilco Louw have been sensational this season. Louw has been so good that most SA fans – perhaps even a few Stormers ones – voiced their displeasure with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu being chosen as the SA URC Player of the Season last week instead of the Bulls No 3. The giant tighthead has been a destructive presence in the scrums, and gets around the field as well with his carries and tackles to emerge as the clear front-runner to start for the Springboks in 2025. Wessels hasn't been far behind, with his powerful surges around the fringes and outstanding work-rate on defence complementing his scrummaging work and versatility to fill in at hooker. In contrast, Leinster are missing injured Irish tighthead stalwart Tadhg Furlong, while loosehead prop Andrew Porter infamously said two years ago that 'It's about getting that fifth star (Champions Cup titles) on the jersey. You don't see many URC or PRO14s or whatever you have on the jersey'. With Leinster having tripped up at the Champions Cup semi-final hurdle once more this season, how motivated will Porter be for the URC final? 3 Hunger for glory The Bulls' loss to Glasgow in front of a packed 50,000-plus crowd at Loftus Versfeld really hurt them. They had roared into a 13-0 first-half lead, only to watch their advantage being whittled away by Franco Smith's band of Warriors. Bok World Cup-winning mentor Jake White even questioned himself and his approach in the aftermath, noting that 'I myself lost a Super Rugby final against the Chiefs (with the Brumbies), lost a Rainbow Cup in Benetton, lost two URC finals...' Despite not having a dynamic Bok wing Kurt-Lee Arendse available this time – as well as losing injured star No 8 Cameron Hanekom in the semi-final – the Bulls are undoubtedly a more well-rounded side this season. They have produced some outstanding performances away from home, most notably beating Munster and Glasgow in Europe. So, a packed Croke Park won't be a daunting environment for this group of Bulls. They will also enjoy being the underdogs in Dublin, despite winning the 2022 and 2024 semi-finals against Leinster. If they can avoid the unnecessary yellow cards from the semi-final and put their best foot forward, they have every chance of emerging victorious on Saturday – at long last putting to bed the defeats in the 2022 and 2024 finals.
