Few injuries from Milan-San Remo crashes

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There appeared to be no serious injuries resulting from the various crashes in Saturday's Milan-San Remo. Even the most ominous crash, that of Carlos Quintero of Colombia Coldeportes, turned out to be not nearly as serious as it first appeared.

Quintero crashed on the descent of La Mamie.  The crash was not shown on television, but viewers could see the gathered ambulances and emergency workers tending the injured man, laying motionless near a stone wall.  He was apparently knocked unconscious, but came to again and spoke with his directeur sportif before being transported to hospital.

After the race, Colombia Coldeportes was happy to announce, “only a broken left collarbone for Quintero. Carlos feels pretty good, and already talked to his family in Colombia.”

Two of BMC Racing's captains crashed during the race, with Philippe Gilbert involved  in one near the top of the penultimate climb of the Cipressa.  "I was feeling good, but I had bad luck with the crash," he said. "A rider from FDJ-BigMat made a move and he crashed and involved some other riders, including me. That's part of the game.”  He was not injured and immediately resumed racing.

His teammate Greg Van Avermaet was not so lucky.  He and Alessandro Ballan were chasing the leading trio on the descent of the Poggio when another rider crashed on the final curve, sending the Belgian into another stone wall.  "My left side is not feeling too great but I can still move," he said. "I'll get X-rays and hopefully it will be OK.”

Matteo Trentin of Omega Pharma-Quick Step crashed in the sprint finish, within site of the finish line.  He had waited for captain Tom Boonen, who was, coincidentally held up by another crash.  When his captain didn't appear, “I tried to do my sprint. However, a rider touched my wheel and I crashed. I was really disappointed.” 

The team reported that he “has scrapes on his body, including his right elbow and gluteal region following the crash in the final corner. While the injuries do not appear to be serious, the team will closely monitor Trentin's condition in the coming days.”