Cyclist Primoz Roglic showed remarkable resilience in the final stage of the Paris-Nice race on Sunday after crashing twice – dislocating his shoulder in the first – and losing the large lead he had accumulated.
The Slovenian, who came into the eighth and final stage of the prestigious race with almost a minute lead, crashed on a descent after 22 kilometers and, after finishing, he confirmed he had dislocated his shoulder in the fall.
As a result of the crash, Roglic was sucked back into the peloton with his shorts ripped and with cuts and bruises on his legs.
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The struggles didn’t end there. After suffering a mechanical fault which dramatically reduced his speed, the 31-year-old fell to the tarmac again with about 20 kilometers to go.
Roglic’s resolve didn’t crumble with his lead long gone as he managed to complete the 92.7km stage, finishing 15th in the overall rankings.
Afterward, Roglic, who had won three stages in this year’s race, said that he “made mistakes” in Sunday’s stage.
“It was not the stage I was hoping for,” he told the Team Jumbo-Visma website. “The first crash dislocated my shoulder and after the second crash I was so far behind that I couldn’t come back.
“It was a huge fight to the finish in which I gave everything. I am disappointed, but this is also part of our sport. Yet I also bring positive things from this start to my season. We will certainly remember those moments. We need to learn from this edition of Paris-Nice and make plans for the next goals.”
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Roglic finished three minutes and eight second behind the eventual winner Bora-Hansgrohe’s Max Schachmann.
The German admitted afterward that he had “mixed feelings” with the victory because of Roglic’s struggles.
“I don’t know if I can be happy, it’s not nice to win like that. It’s very difficult,” he added.
