The veteran Norwegian hit a young spectator at 70km/h but managed to finish in 169th place, safely inside the time limit. He bravely started today’s stage but retired 50km from the finish as the racing became animated.
Arvesen, in his final year before retirement, has had his share of mishaps this season. Not only did he crash in the team time trial on stage 1, he also crashed and broke the saddle off his bike in Paris-Roubaix, riding 20km without a seat before finally quitting the race.
He was due to race the world championships for Norway, but was concerned he might not be fit to start in Copenhagen because of the crash: "I must give it a few days first. Am I not 100 percent, but we have others who can do a good job. I will not take any decision on it now, but I feel surprisingly good."
Earlier in the stage, Denmark’s Matti Breschel (Rabobank) pulled out of the Vuelta after a crash during the Neutralised zone of the stage. He suffered a wound on his chin, as well as road rash on his knees, elbows and hips in his crash. According to the Rabobank team, he has gone to hospital for x-rays on his chest, ribs and hands.
It is not yet clear as to whether the injuries will keep him out of the world championships. Ironically, the Danish national coach announced Thursday morning that Breschel would lead the team.
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