Bahrain provide Eulálio medical update after remarkable Giro fightback from crash
Afonso Eulálio escaped without fractures after a heavy crash in the feed zone on stage 18 of the Giro d’Italia, Bahrain Victorious confirmed after the finish. The Portuguese rider sustained only minor abrasions to his elbow, but still produced a remarkable response by attacking in the finale and defending his hold on the maglia bianca.
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The incident briefly placed Eulálio’s position in the young rider classification under pressure. The Bahrain Victorious rider appeared to get caught up while taking a musette, sparking a chain reaction in the peloton. Several riders narrowly stayed upright, but Harthijs de Vries of Unibet Rose Rockets also went down in the crash.
Eulálio was quickly back on his bike, though he looked shaken after landing on his arm. It was the same arm he had already injured in his stage 5 crash on the run-in to Potenza, and replays later showed him shaking it out as he tried to ride through the discomfort.
Bahrain Victorious reacted immediately to limit the damage. Robert Stannard dropped back from the bunch and helped guide Eulálio back to the peloton with just over 35 kilometres remaining, preventing what could have become a costly moment in the battle for the maglia bianca.
Eulálio had started the day with a 2:17 advantage over Italian talent Davide Piganzoli of Visma | Lease a Bike, a gap built largely on the time he gained during his stage 5 raid. For a short period after the crash, that lead looked vulnerable.
Instead, Eulálio turned the day into another display of resilience. Having chased back after the feed zone incident, he went on the attack on the final classified climb of the day, before later joining Uno-X Mobility’s Johannes Kulset in a late move that briefly threatened to upset the sprinters’ teams. The pair were only caught shortly before the flamme rouge.
After the stage, Bahrain Victorious issued a medical update on Eulálio’s condition.
“Following a repeat examination by the team doctor and X-rays, no fractures have been detected,” the team said. “Afonso sustained only minor abrasions to the elbow. He is stable and remains under medical observation.”
The update will come as a relief to Bahrain Victorious ahead of the final mountain stages, with Eulálio still firmly in the fight for the maglia bianca despite another bruising day at the Giro.
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