First, there was Berckmoes, who won the queen stage in his home country on Saturday, and he made sure everyone knew it. When he and his teammate, Alec Segaert, saw a swimming pool upon their return to the hotel, all the guests had to clear the way. Berckmoes and Segaert took a refreshing dip while dozens of people watched and recorded it. So we have the footage...
Read more below the video
ADVERTISEMENT
Widar crashes in Giro NextGen and has to abandon
The joy in the Giro NextGen was non-existent on Saturday. Lotto had been rolling through the Baby Giro all week with Widar, who was going for the title after his victory last year. Although he lost his jersey on Friday, the 19-year-old Belgian was determined to make it a party again in the final weekend. Unfortunately, that didn't happen due to a hard crash 32 kilometers from the finish.
ADVERTISEMENT
The entire Lotto development team waited for Widar, who, physically and mentally broken, still managed to reach the finish line almost 27 minutes behind the stage winner. However, his emotions erupted during the race, especially after the finish. Although Widar did not break anything in his crash, he will not be riding in Sunday's final stage. āHe suffered bruises and severe swelling to his left elbow and hip,ā said the team.
Read more below the photo.
Italian medium saw Widar mentally collapse in Giro NextGen
The Italian Bicisaw Widar up close on Saturday and wrote: "At the finish, Widar cannot stop crying. Around him, the Lotto staff don't really know what to do, what to say, or where to look. Fifty-year-old Belgians with gray beards are stunned. There is an unsettling silence."
ADVERTISEMENT
"At one point, Widar got up," they reported. "He walked away, almost like a sleepwalker, toward a field of weeds. He drags himself 20 or 30 meters, staggering from his injuries, then collapses on the ground and starts crying again. For minutes, no words came out of his mouth. He has mentally collapsed, and only after fifteen minutes does he walk back to the Lotto. His face is purple from crying, and he has the look of someone angry."
Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.
š¢ really not the news we wanted to share about Jarno Widar: the Maglia Azzurra crashed and he's slowly climbing his way up Prato Nevosoš¤
š¢non la notizia che volevamo dare su Widar: il campione in carica ĆØ caduto e sale col suo passoš¤
šøLaPresse
#GiroNextGen@pcm_giovani_scu
š¢ really not the news we wanted to share about Jarno Widar: the Maglia Azzurra crashed and he's slowly climbing his way up Prato Nevosoš¤
š¢non la notizia che volevamo dare su Widar: il campione in carica ĆØ caduto e sale col suo passoš¤
šøLaPresse
#GiroNextGen@pcm_giovani_scu