Euskaltel pursued by bad luck

By Monika Prell

After the bad crash in yesterday’s stage which saw the abandon of Aitor Hernández with a fractured clavicle, today Euskaltel bemoaned its third loss after Hernández and Beñat Albizuri. Dioni Galparsoro who injured his back in yesterday's crash stared down the face of deep pain when he decided to start stage 12 from Scalenghe to Briançon. But in the first kilometres of the descent from the Col del Agnello, he fell down and broke the head of his right radius.

Galparsoro climbed back on his machine and continued the descent, but the pain and the advice of the race doctors made him quit the race. He was taken to a hospital where the fracture was confirmed. Other injured riders Joseba Zubeldia (fractured tailbone) and Iván Velasco (injured back) will soldier on in the race. On a more positive note, Antton Luengo who crashed in the first stage, is feeling much better and reached the finish line as best Euskaltel rider in 67th place, 17'54 behind stage winner Danilo Di Luca.