Rabobank riders Juan Manuel Garate and Oscar Freire fell on the final descent of the Clasica San Sebastian today. Garate, who lives near the base of the Jaizkibel climb, ended up getting the worst of the crash with a broken hand.
According to a team spokesman the injury to his hand was “a clean break”, and the Spaniard’s start in his home Tour “is not in danger”.
Rabobank’s Tour de France had been dismal, with Freire, the 2008 green jersey winner, unable to match the speed of the race’s top sprinters. But Garate was able to salvage the team’s pride, taking the biggest win of his career in the penultimate stage atop the mythical Mont Ventoux.