Leipheimer out of the Tour with broken wrist
http://www.washingtonpost.com said:Levi Leipheimer has pulled out of the Tour de France with a fractured wrist, his Astana team said Friday.
"Doc has confirmed that Levi has a transverse fracture of the right scaphoid (in wrist). Will not be able to start," Astana said on their website.
American Leipheimer, who was fourth overall, crashed toward the end of Thursday's 12th stage. Friday's 13th stage is a 200-km trek from Vittel to Colmar.
http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/ said:Levi Leipheimer is out of the Tour de France after crashing on stage 12 to Vittel and breaking his wrist.
The American hit the deck 2.5km from the finish on a fast left hand corner where Cadel Evans also crashed. Leipheimer picked himself up and finished the stage without a problem, but, according to Astana's press officer, the pain had increased this morning and so he was taken to hospital where they confirmed the break.
Stage 12 should have been a formality for the Tour's favourites as the peloton rolled along, not bothering to chase to the break away group that contested finish.
Neither was the corner that Leipheimer crashed on particularly tough. The peloton swept round it at full speed as they were building up for the sprint but it was only later when the cameras showed Evans riding gingerly up to the finish line that it became apparent a crash had happened.
Replays of the corner then showed an Astana rider picking himself up out of the grass verge and climbing back on his bike.
cyclingnews.com said:http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/bruyneel-responds-to-leipheimers-departure-from-tour
Speaking to Cyclingnews on Friday morning in Vittel, the Astana directeur sportif expressed his disappointment at losing one of the team's key riders.
"He had a bad night so we took him to the hospital, where we saw the fracture this morning," he said. "Obviously it's disappointing and for us it changes a lot. He was fourth on GC and he's one of the guys that could have won the Tour."
