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STAGE 6: VALVERDE DOWN, NOT OUT AT TOUR DE FRANCE
Road Bike Action & AFP
July 10, 2008
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Spanish champion Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d'Epargne) crashed hard yesterday during Stage 5, but the tough man from Murcia will hang tough for Stage 6. After 90km, Valverde went down, sustaining knee and forearm scrapes and a bruised collarbone injuries after he rode a reflector in the road, had a rear puncture and went down at 50km/hr.
"You would think I've just wrestled with a lion," said Valverde. "We were racing at about 55km/h and then I went over a reflector in the middle of the road. I lost my balance and went over. After my crash, I dropped back to see the race doctor and got back to the peloton relatively easily after a 10km chase. Yeah, I've given my collarbone a whack, as well as my knee and my right calf but I don't feel much pain."
Caisse d'Epargne team manager Eusebio Unzue said "His shoulder is hurting and he's got grazes on his forearm and his elbow, but for now we're not treating it as too serious," said Unzue. First he will see the team doctor and then, if needed, we will go to hospital to check things out." Valverde started Stage 6 with a large bandage on his right arm and knee but was able to joke with the TV cameraman when they zoomed in for a close-up of his injuries.
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