Frenchman Christophe Laporte, victim of a heavy fall during the 5th stage of the Tour of Italy, did not start the 8th stage, his team, Visma-Lease a bike, announced on Saturday.
“Christophe did not start, because unfortunately, he did not fully recover after his fall in the 5th stage,” explained the Dutch team in a press release.
“We decided together that he needed to rest,” adds Visma-Lease a bike.
Laporte, 31, fell heavily during the 5th stage on Wednesday, surprised by a manhole cover on the road.
The Frenchman is the second rider from the Visma-Lease a bike team to abandon after the Dutchman Robert Gesink, who suffered a fall during the first stage.
Laporte was initially not expected to take part in the 2024 Giro, but was retained in the role of launcher for sprinter Olav Kooij.
The 2023 European champion has not been spared from setbacks since the start of the year: he approached Milan-San Remo and was forced to abandon, then followed up with a stomach flu and an operation on the perineum who deprived him of the Flandrian classics.
