Chris Hamilton has suffered a fractured collarbone after crashing on the final day of the DSM-Firmenich PostNL training camp with teammates Oscar Onley and Tim Naberman.
Onley and Naberman were not seriously hurt but Hamilton was immediately suspected of having a fractured left collarbone. He travelled home and underwent surgery on Monday.
Hamilton was due to make his 2025 season debut at the Tour Down Under, in a key role for Onley, who is targeting overall success. Hamilton's presence at his home stage race will now depend on the speed of his recovery and his ability to train indoors as his fracture heals.
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"Unfortunately Chris sustained a crash in training and has fractured his left collarbone. The fracture will require surgery," DSM-Firmenich PostNL doctor Camiel Aldershof explained.
"With the break, it will likely be around four weeks until he can return to racing, which means that his preparation for the Tour Down Under is impacted and there is a chance that he doesn’t take part in the race.
"These things are really on a case-by-case basis so we will continue to assess Chris during the recovery process so that he can return to training and racing in a good way. Oscar and Tim also both came down during the crash, but both appear to be ok."
The DSM-Firmenich PostNL team will gather again in Alicante, Spain for a second training camp and their team presentation on January 6. The confirmation of a new title sponsor means the team will be known as Picnic PostNL in 2025. The team will also switch from Scott to Lapierre bikes for 2026.
The team's 2025 roster includes sprinter Fabio Jakobsen, French veteran Romain Bardet, Warren Barguil, veteran Classics rider John Degenkolb and rising stars Onley and Max Poole.
"It’s of course very disappointing for Chris to have this injury happen at this time of year. We were coming to the end of a nice GC camp in Spain, where Chris was showing off his qualities on and off the bike as a road captain," head coach Rudi Kemna said.
"Unfortunately, this injury means that Chris’s participation for the Tour Down Under, where he was set to play a crucial role in supporting Oscar as our finisher in the deep finals of the harder climbing stages, is in the balance with a decision on his participation made closer to the event.
"We hope that Chris’ recovery goes smoothly, and we look forward to welcoming him back to training and racing when it is clear for him to do so."
