Jose Serpa (Androni Giocattoli)(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
After riding stage three of the Giro d’Italia nursing a broken finger, José Serpa (Androni-Venezuela) headed for Turin on the race’s return to Italy in order to assess the injury in greater detail and have a new cast fitted.
Rather than spend the rest day in Verona, however, Serpa travelled to an orthopaedic surgeon Turin in the company of directeur sportif Giovanni Ellena and team doctor Luca Romano for further scans on his injury.
“First of all, José will undergo another x-ray to see if the fracture in his metacarpal grew during yesterday’s stage,” Androni-Venezuela manager Gianni Savio told Tuttobici. “We’re hoping that nothing has changed, in which case the specialist will create a cast that will allow José to hold the handlebars without problems.”
While his teammates sample the team time trial course in Verona, Serpa will bring his time trial bike with him to Turin to assess whether he needs a special cast for the gripping the tri-bars.
“Ellena is bringing the TT bike, but it’s the surgeon who will decide whether to make two casts or just the one,” Savio explained. “Our hope is that José can continue the Giro with us, and we’re taking heart from the fact that Serpa didn’t feel too much pain during the race yesterday. Although that said, he is a hard man…”
Serpa, who finished 12th overall in the 2009 Giro, is one of the leaders of the Androni-Venezuela team, alongside Jose Rujano.
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