Groenewegen avoids worst-case scenario after Giro opening-stage pile-up
Unibet Rose Rockets’ Dylan Groenewegen has escaped serious injury after being caught in a mass crash inside the final 600 metres of Friday’s opening stage in Burgas, with the Dutchman cleared to continue at the Giro d’Italia following a follow-up medical check at the team hotel.
The 32-year-old Dutchman, the headline name of the Rockets' Giro debut, was unable to contest the bunch sprint after the pile-up disrupted the team's lead-out in the closing kilometre. The team confirmed in a short statement that “a crash in the final made it impossible to sprint for our team. Dylan Groenewegen was involved. An initial check revealed no urgent issues; another one will be conducted at the hotel.”
That second check has now come back positive, the team confirmed in a social media post, with Groenewegen cleared to start Saturday’s stage 2 to Veliko Tarnovo.
Team owner Bas Tietema had been direct in the days before the Grande Partenza, speaking about what the squad was actually trying to achieve, with the team openly stating its goal of winning a stage across the three weeks.
"We are not going to win the GC. Specifically, our goal is to win one stage in the Giro," Tietema told Domestique earlier in the week. "The first stage has a nice addition with the pink jersey, that's a great opportunity. But the real goal is to win one stage."
Groenewegen had arrived in Bulgaria as one of the most dangerous sprinters on the start list, with four wins already on the board in 2026, including the team's first-ever WorldTour victory at the Ronde van Brugge in March.
Marcel Kittel, the former German sprinter who joined the team's performance staff, said in quotes collected by Wielerflits, “Day 1 of 21 is over now and you always hope for the perfect start. You don’t want to be involved in a crash then. That did happen this time, even though the focus was good,” Kittel stated.
The Rockets were sitting in the middle of the peloton when the mass crash occurred with 600 metres to go and Kittel framed it as a learning curve for the Grand Tour debutants. “I saw half of the sprint, until I heard there was a crash. We were there at the turn at 3.6 kilometers, but were around tenth place behind the crash. We need to look at how that happened. We have to learn from this.”
Result: Giro d'Italia stage 1
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