Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) has abandoned Paris-Nice during Saturday's penultimate stage after crashing out with 50km to go.
The Danish rider was lying third overall, 59 seconds off race leader Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease A Bike), heading into the day, a truncated stage from Nice to Auron.
He was expected to be among the contenders for the win at Auron, a 7.3km, 7% climb to close out the 109km stage.
However, with 51km to run, and with the rain falling, he hit a divider in the middle of the road and went down hard on his left-hand side.
Skjelmose remained stationary on the road for some time after the fall as he was tended to by medics. He was later reportedly taken away in an ambulance as the stage continued.
Lidl-Trek posted an update on social media soon after the abandon.
"Mattias Skjelmose is forced to abandon after crashing into some road furniture," the team wrote. "He is currently being transported to hospital in an ambulance. We will update when we know more about his condition."
The team later announced that Skjelmose had avoided any fractures in the crash.
"Good news! Initial reports from the hospital informs us that there are no fractures for Skjelmose," the team stated.
