Cycling: Fall at speed 61: Sprint king Philipsen out on the tour

Sprint king Jasper Philipsen fell violently at the Tour de France at 61 km / h and had to give up the race. The Belgian, who won the opening stage on Saturday and worn the yellow jersey for a day, came after a Rempler shortly before the intermediate sprint around 59 kilometers before the finish in Dunkirk. Philipsen fell on the right shoulder, his entire jersey was torn.

Afterwards Philipsen was treated by the tour doctor for minutes on the roadside. However, the ten-time tour stage winner did not go any further. The fall of the Belgian Laurenz Rex, which brought Cofidis driver Bryan Coquard out of balance. The Frenchman finally collided with Philipsen, who could no longer avoid.

After treatment on the roadside directly to the hospital

Philipsen then came directly to the hospital. Philip Roodhooft, team leader of the Alpecin racing team, was visibly affected. “Of course this ensures emotions. Today’s result is also irrelevant,” he said, and has not yet been able to give any details about the extent of the injuries. “Jasper is down,” he said in English. Roodhooft did not want to make any blame: “At this point it is not really relevant to analyze that. Everyone saw the pictures,” he added.

The tour is losing its best sprinter in recent years. Last year the 27-year-old had even won four stages and the green jersey in 2023. This year the Belgian seemed to be a class of itself again after his season was less successful in spring. In Lille, however, he had won superiorly, a day later his teammate Mathieu van der Poel took over the yellow jersey with the victory in Boulogne-sur-Mer.