Filip Maciejuk (Bahrain Victorious) was disqualified from the Tour of Flanders after sparking a huge crash in the peloton.
Maciejuk was seen moving up along the side of the road with 140 km to race. He then rode into a deep grass section, lost control of his bike and swayed across the road into the peloton.
He sparked a skittle effect, with numerous riders going down.
Julian Alaphilippe gritted his teeth to fight the pain as he waited for mechanical service. A dozen or so riders were involved, with panic in the team cars as mechanics tried to help their riders.
A number of riders were left injured in the crash. Race Radio confirmed that Tim Wellens (UAE Team Emirates) was out of the race and was taken to hospital. Ben Turner (Ineos Grenadiers) and Oier Lazkano (Movistar) were also said to have crashed out.
Other riders were left battered and bruised, including Jasper Stuyven (Trek-Segafredo).
Race officials soon announced that Maciejuk was disqualified.
The peloton rode slowly the first time up the Oude Kwaremont as riders chased back on but the racing was back on on the Kortekeer climb, with 126km to race.
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at CyclingNews RSS Feed…