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Ineos Grenadiers saw two of their leaders in the spotlight at the Vuelta a San Juan on Saturday.
Egan Bernal was forced to abandon due to knee soreness in the opening kilometers of Saturday’s sixth stage, while Filippo Ganna confirmed he would be injured in his arms-on-the-bar chase to the top of the Alto del Colorado mountain. was approved for.
Ganna was caught out for his over-aero position while chasing Miguel Angel López to finish second in Friday’s summit finish.
The Italian time trial star receives no time penalty and therefore maintains his second place overall.
“After yesterday’s stage, the UCI made me aware that I rode in an illegal position by resting my forearms on the handlebars. During that moment of the race I really pushed my limits,” Ganna wrote on social media on Saturday. was increasing and lost concentration for a moment.
“I accept the punishment imposed by the UCI commissioner, and as always I respect that we all must follow UCI rules.”
Oh friend! 😲 Ganna is in TT mode at about 2.5k altitude, it’s on the climb and he’s chasing Superman Lopez. #VueltaSJ2023 pic.twitter.com/FRZRLUWVGf
— Ammattipyoraily (@ammattipyoraily) January 27, 2023
The UCI made waves in 2021 by banning the aero-tuck and arms-on-the-bar position, a decision that could result in disqualification – as Marianne Vos found out last summer at Postnoord Vergarda Westsweden.
Ganna however remains in the race and has a 30-second gap on López to overhaul Sunday’s final stage.
Knee problem calls for time for Bernal’s impressive debut
Luck was short for Bernal, however.
The Colombian star fell behind in the opening kilometers of stage 6 on Saturday.
Ineos Grenadiers confirmed, “Egan Bernal has reluctantly withdrawn from the Vuelta a San Juan because of pain in his left knee, which he was involved in on the first stage of the race.”
The team did not provide any details about the severity of the problem.
Bernal made an impressive debut in his first race of the season on his return from injury.
The two-time Grand Tour champion had attacked on stage 4 earlier in the week, and followed it up with a fourth place behind stage winner and GC-leader López on the Colorado climb on Friday.
Bernal is due to race at the Colombian nationals next weekend before making his European debut at the Ruta del Sol in mid-February.
