"Angry and disappointed" - Jasper Philipsen's crash aftermath as said by his DS

Jasper Philipsen believed he was following the ideal preparation towards Milano-Sanremo, avoiding the brutal weather of Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico to focus instead on good training and a bit of racing now in good weather, but a crash at the Nokere Koerse derailed not only his race but potentially his entire spring.

Alpecin-Deceuninck DS Preben van Hecke discussed the incident in an interview with Wielerflits. “It was a beautiful race. We raced well, after which we still headed for a mass sprint. Then there was that unfortunate crash. It's a shame, that's all you can say about it. Jasper was angry and disappointed," he admitted. "The crash actually happened to his left behind. He couldn't go anywhere. They crashed into him from behind. Too bad.”

Whilst the Belgian did not suffer fractures in the fall, which means that defending his title this Saturday is still a possible mission, the high-speed fall did lead to some consequences that are now being felt.

“He has superficial abrasions on his right side. His hand – between his two fingers – will probably also need stitches," the former pro continued. "But it’s mainly the bruises. If you fall hard, you still have some bruises and stiffness.” Alpecin-Deceuninck will always have Mathieu van der Poel as their main card for this race, however the team will still do everything possible to try and have their second co-leader at the start of the 300-kilometer long race.

“We’ll have to wait and see. The night will show how he’ll get up tomorrow morning. We’ll see. Normally, he’ll travel to Italy tomorrow evening," he concluded.