French sprint hope Nacer Bouhanni was taken to hospital by ambulance after crashing early on the fifth stage of the Tour de France on Wednesday.
The 24-year-old former French champion hit the deck after 12 kilometres of the 189.5km trek from Arras to Amiens, which was expected to end with a bunch sprint in which he would have been among the favourites. It was Bouhanni’s second crash within 10 days having also tasted the tarmac in the finale of the French Championships a week before the Tour began.
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He injured his ribs in that fall and initially announced on his Twitter account that he would miss the Tour, only to confirm his participation the day before the Grand Boucle began.
His Cofidis manager Yvon Sanquer revealed he had broken nothing and his sports director Didier Rous told France Television that Bouhanni had “again hurt his injured ribs”.
He will be out of action for between eight to 10 days, Sanquer said. He was the eighth person to abandon the Tour after seven riders crashed out on the third stage that saw a spectacular pile-up involving about 20 riders. It was Bouhanni’s second participation at the Tour after 2013, in which also he crashed out inside the first week.
Wednesday’s fifth stage was designed to pay homage to the soldiers who died on the battlefields of northern France during World War I. Several commemorative centenary events were programmed throughout the day.
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