Dazed Alex Molenaar out of Tour after crash he cannot remember

The Dutch rider from Caja Rural went down with just over five kilometres remaining on the road to Pau. He got back on his bike and reached the finish, coming in second last, around seven minutes behind stage winner Olav Kooij.

Molenaar crossed the line with torn kit, cuts and abrasions across his body, and looked visibly shaken. AS reported that he later told people at the finish that he had no memory of the crash.

The race’s medical bulletin listed a concussion and referred to the concussion protocol. That has raised obvious concern, because riders with signs of concussion are not supposed to continue without being properly assessed.

The central question is what happened between the crash and the finish. Molenaar was able to remount and ride on, but it is unclear whether a full enough check was carried out before he did so.

After the stage, race doctors examined him near the team area. According to AS, he was asked to follow their fingers with his eyes, a routine check after a possible head injury. Caja Rural then kept monitoring his condition and later confirmed that he would not take the start the next day.

The team statement referred to a fractured metacarpal in his right hand. It did not put the same emphasis on the concussion mentioned in the official medical report.

Molenaar later adressed his withdrawal on Instagram. “Unfortunately, my Tour de France has come to an end,” he wrote. “After a heavy crash, I hit my head and hand hard.” He added that the checks on his head were reassuring, but that he had fractured the first metacarpal in his hand and would need surgery.

“I feel enormous sadness at not being able to continue in this wonderful race and fulfil the dream of reaching Paris,” Molenaar continued. “But that is this sport: sometimes it is the most beautiful in the world and other times the hardest.” He said he would return home with memories he would keep forever, including the mountains jersey, “something I never imagined achieving.”

For Molenaar, it is a harsh end to a promising first week. He had been one of the early attackers of the race and briefly wore the polka dot jersey.

The incident also points to a wider issue for cycling. Concussion rules have become stricter, but applying them in the middle of a fast moving Tour finale remains difficult. Riders often try to continue on instinct. Teams and race doctors then have only seconds to decide whether someone is fit to carry on.

In Molenaar’s case, the answer came too late to stop him finishing the stage.