Broken collarbone for Frank Schleck after Fleche Wallonne crash

Frank Schleck will miss Liège-Bastogne-Liège on Sunday after suffering a broken collarbone in a crash at La Flèche Wallonne. The Trek-Segafredo rider confirmed on Twitter he would have to undergo surgery on Thursday.

The Luxemburger was a victim of a crash that occurred in the middle of the bunch around 45 kilometres from the finish. He was one of two Trek-Segafredo riders to go down, but while Haimar Zubeldia was able to get back on his bike, Schleck immediately reached for his right shoulder, often a telling indication of a broken collarbone.

Schleck immediately abandoned the race, and the Trek-Segafredo team told Cyclingnews that he was taken to hospital in "a lot of pain" and that the team doctor accompanying him in the car was almost certain the collarbone was broken. The 36-year-old is currently undergoing tests at the hospital to ascertain the severity of the injury. 

While it is unclear at this stage how long Schleck will be out of action for, what is certain is that he will miss Liège-Bastogne-Liège on Sunday. It comes as a fresh blow for Trek-Segafredo, who lost Fabio Felline to a neutral zone crash at the Amstel Gold Race on Sunday, with the rider suffering a fractured skull and facing two to three months out. 

"For us it's a shame because we've already lost Felline at Amstel, and now Frank," team general manager Luca Guercilena told Luxemburger Wort after the race. "It's complicated for us for Liège now."

Schleck suffered a severe collarbone injury nearly six years ago when he crashed early on in the 2010 Tour de France. It was the other collarbone - his left one - that was affected that day, broken in three places, and he required surgery that involved inserting a plate and six screws for a period of nearly six months.