Tyler Farrar was unable to defend his title at Scheldeprijs after being involved in a finish-line crash in the Belgian semi-classic after an incredible race by the team.
Farrar was poised to open up his sprint when a touch of wheels sent riders to the deck, taking defending champion Farrar with them. He was unable to contest for victory at the end of a hard-fought race. Mark Cavendish avoided the spill and won.
“I was coming into the finale, but got hit from behind, and went down hard. It’s a pity because before I crashed, I was really well-positioned and I had good legs,” Farrar said after an initial medical checkup to confirm no major injuries.
“The team did everything perfectly all day. I would have loved to repeat here this year and that was the goal. I know a couple of other guys went down, including Wouter Weylandt, who’s my best friend. I hope everyone’s OK. Like I said, the team rode perfectly today. I’m grateful for the hard work everyone did. Now we look ahead to Sunday to Paris-Roubaix.”
Farrar suffered cuts and bruising and will be further evaluated by team medical staff, but seems to have escaped serious injury.
Garmin-Cervélo manager Jonathan Vaughters was impressed with how the team performed in the 200km route and said the squad is doubly motivated heading into Sunday’s “Hell of the North” despite the bad-luck crash.
“The team rode great today. They did everything right. Tyler was positioned perfectly in the finale when the crashed happened. He went down hard. It’s just bad luck, but there’s nothing the team could have done differently,” Vaughters said.
“And despite the bad luck for Tyler in the finale at Scheldeprijs, the team put in a great race. Hope all the guys that crashed here today are ok. They rode hard and smart and left it all on the road. I’m proud of what we did here today and I think it just makes us more motivated for Sunday.”
“The team at País Vasco did well, too, where Ryder’s sitting fifth on GC. Overall, it was a good day for the team.”
More photos from Scheldeprijs:
