Blikra's painful Giro start after major stage 1 crash: 'It's going to be some long weeks now'

A crash inside the final 650 metres rocked the peloton, ruling the majority of the bunch from contesting the finish, and dashing the dreams of many sprinters on the opening stage. 

Among those to fall was Uno-X Mobility’s fast man, Erlend Blikra. The 29-year-old Norwegian was, in fact, the first rider to hit the ground in the crash, which also included the likes of Dylan Groenewegen (Unibet Rose Rockets) and Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Premier Tech). 

In the end, Blikra managed to finish the stage in 183rd place, but was sporting wounds at the finish as he gave his initial reaction to the incident. 

“I haven't seen the footage really close yet, but it was a real narrow road in the end, and yeah, I just got clipped, my front wheel,” explained Blikra to TNT Sports. “I don't know if it was anybody's mistake, but I was the first guy down, and that’s not great.”

The freshness in the bunch on the opening stage meant that there were more riders fighting for position, believing in their chance of success. As a result, the odds of a crash in the finale increased significantly, Blikra suggested. 

“It was really easy the whole day, so I think everybody was super fresh in the end, and that just makes it more hectic,” explained Blikra, who couldn’t fault the execution of the game plan from his team.

“I felt great, and we did what we planned to do with the team, and I think I had a good position in the end also, so it's a shame really,” said Blikra. 

With the race only just underway and with 20 stages remaining, Blikra acknowledged the uphill battle that awaits him, particularly in terms of his recovery, something that is crucial across a three-week race. Despite the visible wounds, the Norwegian showed his strong mentality.

“I have a lot of wounds on my back. So, that's not great on the first day. 
It's going to be some long, long weeks now, not being able to sleep like I wanted to, but we'll just keep on fighting,” said Blikra.