Sunday 17 April 2016 18:37, UK
Italian rider Fabio Felline fractured his skull and broke his nose in a freak crash at the Amstel Gold Race on Sunday.
The 26-year-old was catapulted over his handlebars and landed face-first in the road while rolling towards the official start line.
Footage appeared to show Felline reaching down to his front wheel when it suddenly stopped turning and vaulted him forwards.
He was taken to hospital and his Trek-Segafredo team later released a statement confirming he had been injured seriously.
Team physician Jens Hinder said: "Fabio crashed with his face directly into the ground. He sustained a broken nose and cuts to his face, and the radiologists also found a fracture at the base of the skull.
"He needs further examination to determine if it is stable or unstable and this will determine what treatment is required for recovery. It is too early to know until he undergoes further tests."
Felline had been hoping to figure prominently in the Amstel Gold Race after recently overcoming illness. He will now miss Wednesday's La Fleche Wallonne and next Sunday's Liege-Bastogne-Liege one-day classics.
The Amstel Gold Race was won by fellow Italian Enrico Gasparotto.
