Vincenzo Nibali will undergo surgery for the treatment of the tenth thoracic vertebrae fracture following his crash during Stage 12 of Tour de France, his Bahrain Merida team has confirmed.
The Italian crashed with about 4 kilometres to go of the 175.5-kilometre stage from Bourg-Saint-Maurice Les Arcs to Alpe d’Huez. Footage of the incident appeared to show the strap of a camera becoming entangled his handlebars as he made his way through the crowds on Alpe d’Huez.
Despite his crash, he went on to finish the stage in 7th position, just 13″ down on stage winner Geraint Thomas (Team Sky). After the stage, he was taken by ambulance to hospital in Grenoble for tests. Nibali had been sitting in fourth place overall when he was forced to abandon the race.
“After consultations of the Team Bahrain Merida medical staff with various specialists and after an attentive and careful examination of the athlete’s clinical condition and future perspectives, the team and the rider agreed to the decision to have a percutaneous vertebroplasty surgery. The procedure is going to take place on next week in Italy,” explained Bahrain Merida Team Doctor Emilio Magni.
