Italian airlifted to Denver hospital, examination reveals plastic surgery required
Suffering serious injuries, Team Type 1 – Sanofi rider Daniele Callegarin crashed out of the USA Pro Challenge on Wednesday and had to be airlifted to a hospital in Denver. The accident happened when some members of the peloton hit a cattle guard across the road, bringing down five riders including Ivan Basso (Liquigas Cannondale), who went on to finish the stage.
Callegarin was the most badly hurt and spent some time lying on the road before being flown away for treatment. His team-mate Will Dugan explained what happened. “The leaders neutralized the race, because it was a bad crash, so that riders could get back on,” he said. “We were going pretty fast because we had been trying to get in breakaways all morning, but the speed was above 50k per hour. It was a terrifying crash.”
The Italian Callegarin does not speak any English and was accompanied by Director Sportif Mike Carter to translate. Team doctor Mark Greve was also at hand to explain the extent of the rider’s injuries.
“Daniele crashed very hard at high speed and has a severe concussion and significant maxillofacial injuries that will probably require plastic surgical repair,” Greve said.
“He has a dental injury, a deep laceration to his lip and chin, and most of the skin around his lower jaw was denuded. He also has a broken left hand that will require surgery and a broken right hand that will not. He is in serious but stable condition and is awake and talking.”
Team Type 1 – Sanofi expects more updates about Callegarin’s conditions today. The rider made contact with his family back home before heading into surgery.
The stage was won by veteran cyclist George Hincapie (BMC Racing Team) while best young rider Tejay van Garderen (HTC Highroad) finished second and took over the race lead.
Some riders commented after the accident that it was an example of how racing without race radios increases the danger of the sport. They said that if riders had been warned about the cattle guard that it wouldn’t have happened.