Cian Uijtdebroeks' start to life at his new team, Movistar, has hit a setback after the Belgian was diagnosed with a small fracture in his elbow following his crash at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana.
The 22-year-old was getting his season underway in Valencia, making his debut for the Spanish team after transferring from Visma-Lease a Bike in the winter.
Uijtdebroeks opened his account with 29th on the opening stage in Torreblanca before finishing 81st in the stage 2 time trial he called "crazy" and "simply unsafe" due to high winds.
The next day, however, he crashed 50km from the end of the 158km stage to San Vicente del Raspeig before continuing to the finish and withdrawing from the race ahead of stage 4.
Uijtdebroeks went for checks after the stage, telling Sporza, "I feel something in my hand". Scans at a local hospital initially revealed no fractures, though Uijtdebroeks exited the race with bandaging on his forearm. Movistar manager Jürgen Roelandts said that a return to racing at Paris-Nice might be possible.
On Tuesday morning, Movistar announced that Uijtdebroeks had suffered a small fracture to his elbow in the crash, though it's not yet clear for how long he'll be out of action.
"Following the crash during stage 3 of the Volta Comunitat Valenciana, and after further medical evaluation and diagnostic tests, a fissure to the radial head of the left elbow has been identified, requiring active rest," Movistar announced on social media.
Uijtdebroeks had been set to head to Paris-Nice next month before taking on Itzulia Basque Country and the Ardennes Classics in April, working towards his main goal of the Tour de France. Now, following his injury, it remains to be seen when he'll next be racing in the peloton.
