Tadej Pogacar suffered a concussion and is facing surgery on a broken collarbone after the crash which ended his Vuelta a Espana challenge on Saturday.
The UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider's bid to complete cycling's Grand Tour hat-trick came to a painful end when the race leader and five-time Tour de France winner crashed out with blood on his face and an injured shoulder.
Slovenia's Pogacar, who had been wearing the red jersey since winning the first stage, went down in the peloton with more than 30 kilometres left in the ride from Pucol to Xeraco.
A television replay showed the 27-year-old swerving to his right, colliding with another rider before going down. He was also hit by other riders coming from behind, a couple of whom also fell. TV replays suggested he may have hit an object, possibly a small rock, on the ground.
He tried to stand up and get back on his bike as his teammates stopped around him, but he sat back down as medics rushed to him.
He later walked into an ambulance with his arm in a sling, and the team announced he was facing surgery.
“Unfortunately, Tadej suffered a heavy crash during today’s stage and was unable to continue the race,” Dr Adrian Rotunno, Medical Director, UAE Team Emirates-XRG said in a statement.
“He is stable, and following a thorough medical assessment at hospital, Tadej has been diagnosed with a concussion, displaced left clavicle fracture, a stable C7 cervical fracture, and multiple abrasions.
“Fortunately, no other major injuries and no neurological fallout. He will require clavicle surgery which will be delayed due to concussion precautions. Tadej remains under the care of our medical team and we’ll provide further updates following the surgery.”
Pogacar, who won his fifth Tour de France last month and also won the Giro d'Italia in 2024, was aiming for his first overall victory in the Vuelta. That would have made him only the ninth rider to have won all three of cycling's Grand Tours.
UAE team manager Joxean Fernandez Matxin said it was important they rallied behind Pogacar and offered the support he needed.
“Now we stay with Tadej the person, his personal situation is bad so we need to stay with him. And we'll continue in the race,” he said.
“At the time, I couldn't talk to him, obviously, about what actually happened. But these are situations that sometimes happen in cycling.
“Now in any case, we have to be with Tadej the person, not with Tadej Pogacar the cyclist, or Tadej Pogacar the champion or Tadej Pogacar the leader of the Vuelta.
“We need to be with him more in the bad moments than we do in the good ones.”
Pogacar began Saturday's stage with a lead of three minutes and 50 seconds over second-placed Enric Mas.
Mas took the red jersey after stage eight, becoming the first Spaniard to lead the Vuelta since Jesus Herrada in 2018. Pogacar's compatriot Primoz Roglic, a four-time winner of the Vuelta, now lies second, a minute behind Mas.
Frenchman Bryan Coquard won the stage after several riders fell in another crash in the final kilometre. Mads Pedersen finished second while Jordi Meeus was third.
On the podium, sombre Mas accepted the red jersey but did not wear it, holding it in front of him instead.
“It’s a real shame,” Mas said about Pogacar's crash. “I hope he gets better quickly. We've still got a few races left and I hope he'll be in good shape for them.”
Pogacar's teammates who had stopped for him crossed the finish line nearly 12 minutes after the peloton.
