Eritrea's Girmay crashes out of Giro

Rome (AFP) – Eritrean cycling star Biniam Girmay crashed out of the Giro d'Italia on Tuesday's fourth stage.

Issued on: 07/05/2024 - 16:49

Biniam Girmay's 2024 Giro is cruelly cut short by a crash in the fourth stage © Luca Bettini / AFP

Girmay, third in the stage 24 hours earlier, took a heavy fall on a descent ahead of the final intermediate sprint on a wet right hand bend around 67km from the finish.

Nursing what appeared to be his right hip he rode off gingerly only to dismount from his bike shortly afterwards and was taken away in an ambulance.

He was one of his Intermarche-Wanty team's best hopes for a stage win on this year's Giro.

The 24-year-old is the first black African to win one of cycling's classics -- in the Gent-Wevelgem in 2022, and a stage on one of cycling's three big Tours, in the Giro the same season.

His Giro achievement was marred by a freak accident on the podium when a cork from a bottle he opened to celebrate his victory flew into his eye and he had to withdraw from the race the following day.