Thursday, May 24, 2007

Dioni out; no end to Euskaltel`s bad luck


Well, it`s not getting any better for Euskaltel is it? After the abandonment of Aitor Hernández yesterday due to a broken collarbone, Euskaltel`s main GC hope Dioni Galparsoro had to leave the Giro today. After crossing the massive Col dell`Agnello, Dioni crashed early on when heading downwards. He quickly remounted the bike though, and carried on. But, with the pain getting worse, he sought help with the doctors. They adviced him to quit straight away, as they feared his radius on his right arm might be broken. When taken to the hospital, their fears were proved right. That leaves Euskaltel with 6 riders, as Beñat Albizuri had to call it a day on the 8th stage because of stomach pains. How long Dioni will be sidelined, I don`t know at the time of writing. It`s a travesty for Dioni, as his career has been badly plagued by injuries. He was finally finding old form it seemed, but he`ll now be out of competition for some time, and that will no doubt have a bad affect on his form. I wish you a speedy recovery Dioni.


The stage itself did not result in any noteworthy performances for the orange-clad Basques. Though, there was one positive, as Antton Luengo seems to be getting better after his unfortunate fall in the opening TTT. He was the best placed Euskaltel rider today, coming home in 67th position. Let`s hope he`ll join a break or two to try his luck in the coming days. Euskaltel results:


  • 67th, Antton Luengo, 17: 54

  • 98th, Aketza Peña, 26:06

  • 101st, Markel Irizar, 26:06

  • 103rd, Iván Velasco, 26:06

  • 143rd, Joseba Zubeldia, 32:54

  • 156th, Koldo Fernández, 33:03

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