Geraint Thomas crashed at the Giro d’Italia after running over a stray water bottle that lodged in his front wheel before the official start of Monday’s third stage.
Thomas, the 2018 Tour de France champion, was about a mile into the neutral start within the peloton when he ran over the bottle that rolled across the road.
“Initially he had some pain, but as the stage continued he felt better,” Ineos Grenadiers sports director Matteo Tosatto said in a press release. “However towards the end in the final 45 kilometers the pace increased and the climbs got steeper – he had some pain and had to finish the stage at his own pace.