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Coppa Bernocchi crash fractures neck, costs Van den Berg third
A crash about 600 meters from the finish of Coppa Bernocchi tore through the bunch during the fight for position ahead of the sprint, after Noa Isidore made contact with Marijn van den Berg and then Ben Swift, bringing down several riders behind him. Andrea Raccagni fractured his third cervical vertebra, and Alex Aranburu broke his collarbone and part of his pelvis. The race jury relegated Van den Berg, who had crossed the line third, to last in the finishing group after footage showed him making shoulder contact with Isidore while moving up on wide roads. Isidore went on to win ahead of Tommaso Dati, with Orluis Aular promoted to third.
What this means
Van den Berg's relegation from third to last in the finishing group has already altered the final classification, with Aular moving up into third place. Raccagni faces a surgical assessment to determine his course of treatment and recovery.
Isidore said the contact came from an EF rider pushing him into another rider he believed was Filippo Ganna, leaving him unable to avoid the collision: «I think it's Filippo Ganna next to me, and the guy from EF just pushed me and I couldn't do anything, so I hope Filippo is good now. But it's like that.» Ganna, who rides for Netcompany-Ineos, was among those who fell. One rider smashed into an unpadded light post, and riders fell into a cement curb during the sequence. Soudal Quick-Step confirmed Raccagni's fractured vertebra after hospital examinations including a CT scan, and he was scheduled for surgical assessment on October 7 to determine treatment. Cofidis confirmed Aranburu's right collarbone and iliac wing fractures. Ben Swift, who is retiring this season, finished with cuts and gashes but was still hoping to race Paris-Tours. Earlier in the race, a DHL delivery van had pulled onto the course between the breakaway and the chasing groups with about 19km remaining, though no injuries or crashes resulted from that incident. Isidore reflected on the win itself: «It's a good finish for me. The goal today was to win, so I came here in Italy for that and I'm very happy.»
Sources
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