Carlos Rodríguez will not start stage 18 of the Tour de France after fracturing his pelvis, Ineos Grenadiers announced on Thursday morning.
The Spaniard came down in a crash in the final kilometres of stage 17 on Wednesday. After remounting his bike, Rodríguez was able to finish the stage, but hospital tests later that evening revealed the extent of his injuries and confirmed that he would be unable to continue to race. He was 10th in the general classification.
"Carlos Rodríguez will regrettably not take the start of stage 18 today following his crash in the final moments of yesterday’s stage," Ineos Grenadiers said in a short update on X. "Hospital scans have confirmed a fracture of the pelvis.
"Carlos is in good spirits and remains under the close supervision of our medical team. He will now return home to focus on recovery and the rehabilitation process."
The withdrawal of Rodríguez will come as a blow to Ineos Grenadiers with the Spaniard their best placed rider. Thymen Arensman, winner of stage 14 to Superbagnères, is in 14th for Ineos, but he is still well outside the top ten.
There were several other crashes in the finale of stage 17 as heavy rain affected the closing kilometres of the stage won by Jonathan Milan. Intermarché–Wanty’s Biniam Girmay came down in a heavy fall just under the one kilometre to go marker as several teams began to orchestrate a leadout for their sprinters.
After initially receiving medical treatment at the roadside, Girmay managed to complete the stage and his team confirmed late on Wednesday that the Eritrean had managed to escape serious injury. Two more of his teammates also came down but escaped unscathed from the incident.
"Following their crashes in Tour de France stage 17, Louis Barré, Biniam Girmay and Hugo Page received immediate medical attention. They sustained superficial injuries; no fractures or serious injuries were detected. However, given the impact suffered by Girmay in particular, we are closely monitoring his recovery," Girmay’s team confirmed in an X post.
The Tour de France continues on Thursday with the first of two summit finishes in the high Alps.
