Jay Vine escapes serious injury after horrifying crash at Giro d'Italia

Jay Vine is out of the Giro d'Italia. (Getty Images: Tim de Waele) Jay Vine sustained a fractured elbow and concussion in his horror crash on stage two of the Giro d'Italia in Bulgaria. Vine has suffered three crashes in just 13 race days this year, and in 2022 almost lost his ability to walk after a crash in the Basque Country. Riders will complete a 175km ride from Plovdiv to Sofia in the Giro d'Italia's final day on Bulgarian roads. Link copiedShareShare articleAustralian cyclist Jay Vine has escaped serious injury in his horrifying crash on stage two of the Giro d'Italia in Bulgaria on Saturday. The 30-year-old was confirmed by UAE Team Emirates-XRG to have suffered a fractured elbow and concussion — neither of which will require surgery. However, the accident could have been much worse. Vine was taken out when UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammate Mark Soler's front wheel lost traction on a slippery descent with 22km remaining on the second stage of this year's race. Several riders came down, with UAE Team Emirates-XRG particularly badly affected as Soler, Vine and team leader Adam Yates all smashed into the armco barrier at high speed. Vine appeared to be riding immediately behind Soler and had nowhere to go, sliding and hitting the metal barrier with sickening force. Yates, too, was particularly badly affected, landing sideways on top of the barrier and ending up covered in a mix of blood and mud before riding on to the finish, losing 14 minutes to the race leaders. "Unfortunately, we were badly affected by the crash on stage two yesterday," Dr Adrian Rotunno, UAE Team Emirates' medical director, said on Sunday. "Jay Vine suffered a concussion and an elbow fracture. Marc Soler has a pelvic fracture. At this stage, neither should require surgery. "Adam Yates suffered heavy abrasions and a laceration to his left ear. He was initially assessed on-site for concussion and cleared to continue, but subsequently, he has shown delayed concussive symptoms. He will not take the start of stage three today. "All three are under observation of our medical staff and will travel home in the coming days to continue their recovery and rehab." Vine was initially complaining about pain in the same arm that he broke at the Tour Down Under in January, according to UAE directeur sportif Fabio Baldato, as he was taken to the hospital. Jay Vine was stretchered to hospital. (Supplied: SBS) Vine, the Australian time trial champion and world silver medallist against the clock, had been hoping to challenge for victory on stage 10's 42km race of truth. The incident once again brought into stark relief the risk of modern cycling, where high speeds and high stakes combine in a terrifying mix. Fifteen years to the day on from the death of Belgian sprinter Wouter Weylandt, who died of injuries caused by a heavy crash on the descent from the Passo del Bocco on the 2011 edition of the Giro d'Italia, cycling did not need another reminder of the fragility of its key protagonists. Cycling has lost another rider due to a downhill crash, with teenager Muriel Furrer killed on a descent at the World Championships in Zurich. So where does the responsibility lie? Colombian rider Cristian Camilo Munoz died from a knee infection six days after crashing at the Tour du Jura in France in April, just the latest in an increasingly long list of fatalities within the professional peloton. Earlier this season, British rider Tom Pidcock was fortunate to avoid the worst when he fell down a ravine on the fifth stage of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya. "It was like one of these horror crashes you see … I am lucky I could talk on the radio," Pidcock said at the time. "I was far from the road and nobody knew I was there. Sixty kilometres per hour off a mountain road and I'm relatively OK." In 2024, Swiss teenager Muriel Furrer was not so lucky, lying undiscovered for 82 minutes after crashing during a junior women's road race at the world championships in Zurich, and dying at the scene. Norway's André Drege died at the Tour of Austria that same year, with Swiss rider Gino Mäder dying after crashing into a ravine on the descent of the Albula Pass at the Tour de Suisse in 2023. This Bulgarian pile-up was 30-year-old Vine's third serious crash in 13 race days this year. Jay Vine withdrew from the Volta a Catalunya after a crash on stage three. (Getty Images: Szymon Gruchalski) He was taken out by a kangaroo at the Tour Down Under in January — a race he ended up winning despite riding for over 70 with what his team described as "a significant left wrist scaphoid fracture" that required surgery — and the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya in March. Incredibly, that Catalunya crash was Vine's 22nd crash in the last five years, according to ProCyclingStats data. None was more serious than his 2022 terrifying tumble at the Itzulia Basque Country that left him with a fractured skull and vertebrae, leaving him with fears he may never walk again. Then, as

Jay Vine escapes serious injury after horrifying crash at Giro d'Italia

Key takeaways

Also covered by

Jay Vine escapes serious injury after horrifying crash at Giro d'Italia

Key takeaways

Also covered by

More in international