A setback for Visma | LaB: Jorgenson breaks collarbone and will miss the Ardennes classics

Just before the start, the team announced that reserve team leader Ben Tulett would not be starting after all. He was still suffering too much from his crash and therefore decided to skip the Amstel Gold Race. As a result, the Dutch team began the race with only six riders.

And Visma | Lease a Bike’s cup of misfortune wasn’t empty yet. The final stretch of the Amstel Gold Race began on the Kruisberg, and team leader Jorgenson was right in the mix in an elite group. Kévin Vauquelin (INEOS Grenadiers) crashed right in front of the American, who couldn’t avoid him.

Jorgenson lay on the ground in severe pain and could not continue. The focus on the hill classics could thus seemingly be thrown out the window. Jorgenson was transported to the hospital. It turned out that the American had broken his collarbone. As a result, he will miss the Flèche Wallonne and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. This is a major setback for Visma | Lease a Bike, as Jorgenson was the team’s lead rider for the Ardennes classics.

Remco Evenepoel was in the lead going into that corner and said he knew it was tricky there. “That’s also why I took the lead on that descent. I knew it might be a bit wet and that there were a lot of left and right turns in that section. I wanted to take the lead there and not be on someone’s wheel, which unfortunately turned out to be the right choice.”

‘Unfortunately, crashes like that are part of the game. Last season there was also a big crash, which meant I had to chase for a long time. The most important thing, however, is that the injuries sustained by the riders who crashed aren’t as bad as they could have been.’

Frans Maassen spoke briefly on behalf of the team. ‘We had high expectations for this race and were well prepared. Everyone could see that Matteo was in good form, so it’s very disappointing that our race ended this way. As a team, we were well positioned in the race,’ said the former winner.