Jakob Omrzel (Adria Mobil Juniors) suffered a serious crash of the first stage of the Giro della Lunigiana, with the 18-year-old reportedly requiring resuscitation but now in stable condition in hospital in La Spezia, on Italy’s Tyrrhenian coast north of Tuscany.
Omrzel is considered a future talent of Slovenian cycling, likely to follow in the footsteps of Tadej Pogačar. He was twice national road race champion and the winner of this year’s Paris-Roubaix junior.
The crash occurred early on stage 1 of the prestigious Giro della Lunigiana and saw Omrzel and Italian rider Jacopo Sasso hospitalised, along with a signalman, who reportedly suffered several fractures.
The riders appeared to collide with the signalman – a motorbike outrider who had stopped to direct the peloton around low lying road furniture, with the incident was captured on video.
Omzrel’s condition was initially reported as being serious, with several outlets reporting that the rider required resuscitation at the scene as a result of serious wound to his neck.
Sasso suffered broken fingers and several abrasions, according to BiciSport.
Omzrel’s coach Nace Korosec has told Slovenian outlet Sportal that his condition is stable.
The exact dynamics of the accident on stage 1 are still being investigated to understand the cause of the crash.
Giro della Lunigiana is a major feature in the junior race calendar, often help identify future talent. Recent previous winners include Tadej Pogačar, Remco Evenepoel and Lenny Martinez.
Stage 2 of the race was cancelled due to safety concerns after heavy rain and landslides.
