Bahrain Victorious rider Filip Maciejuk has been handed a 30 day suspension from racing for causing a crash at the Tour of Flanders.
The Polish rider was judged to have been “riding outside of the race course and through a puddle on the roadside” when he crashed and caused a mass pile-up, wiping out most of the peloton.
Footage of the incident was broadcast live and supports the UCI’s conclusions.
Maciejuk did not come down in the incident and was able to continue but he was later disqualified from the race.
His ban from racing started yesterday and will last for a full month.
Massive crash in the peloton with dozens of riders involved. Wellens seems to be the biggest victim. #RVVmen #RVV23 pic.twitter.com/CovtCaZdlvApril 2, 2023
Riders riding off the road to move up the side of the bunch has long been a bone of contention in cycling, especially in Belgium where good quality cycle paths frequently border the road.
Speaking on the Watt Occuring podcast in the wake of the incident in the sprint Ineos Grenadiers road captain Luke Rowe said: “He made a massive mistake but I feel sorry for him. He is public enemy number one, maybe I shouldn't feel sorry for him because he caused a lot of people to break their bones.
"We were at dinner last night and Kurt Bogaerts [Ineos Grenadiers sports director] was there and he read an article from one of the big Belgian news sites... and I don't know what his name is but it said 'his name: the guy who ruined the Tour of Flanders'. Imagine that being you."
At the time UCI Peter Van Den Abeele had said that he “wanted to make an example” of Maciejuk.
Shortly after the incident that occurred over 100km into the race when the bunch was travelling at high speed, Maciejuk took to Twitter to apologise.
He wrote: “I’m really sorry for my mistake and causing the crash today. I hope all those involved are in good health and safe. This should not happen and was a big error in my judgement.
“I had no intention of causing this. All I can do now is apologise for my mistake and learn from this in the future. Sorry again to the peloton, my teammates and the fans.”
Maciejuk is generally considered one of Poland’s best prospects for success at the world’s highest level.
