27th April 2019
Italian veteran from Movistar Team crashes hard at stage three finish in Villafranca del Bierzo, still finishing 4th overall. Carlos Barbero also involved: elbow contusion, no fractures
Movistar Team suffered a double setback with its two main performers -Daniele Bennati and Carlos Barbero, down just before the finish- at the 2019 Vuelta a Castilla y León, which crowned Davide Cimolai (ICA) as overall victor on Saturday at the end of the 151km stage three, from León to Villafranca del Bierzo.
After hard work from the Blues to reduce the bunch in the climbs of Foncebadón (Cat-2) and Onamio (Cat-3) -the peloton coming back together later on-, the dangerous, twisty narrow final kilometer saw Bennati and Barbero both crashing down into one of the final turns.
Bennati suffered a deep blow to his right-hand shoulder, while Barbero hit his elbow, both requiring further exams at a hospital in Ponferrada. The scans confirmed a collarbone fracture for Daniele, with Barbero not suffering any broken bones despite a significant contusion.
Since the crash -which also split the sprint and gave Enrique Sanz (EUS) the day’s victory- happened inside the last 3km, the GC positions didn’t change, with Daniele still in 4th overall in Spain.
