“I then flew into the air, crashed in a tree and finished on the ground" - Jan Tratnik considers himself lucky after car crash rules him out of the Giro d'Italia

After being sadly ruled out of the Giro d'Italia after a crash with a car on the eve of the races beginning, Jan Tratnik has taken to social media to give his reaction.

"I’m still searching for reasons why this had to happen. It was a nice morning ride, I was coming back to hotel happy and excited, because I knew it was last training before Giro d’Italia," starts a post on the official Instagram account of the Jumbo-Visma rider. "But 2km before our team hotel, car crossed my line and I couldn’t do anything about it. Lady didn’t see me and she rode directly into me."

After a covid crisis at the team had already seen Primoz Roglic's quest for the Maglia Rosa lose three of his key domestiques, the absence of Tratnik adds further disruption into the team's preparation. "I tried to avoid serious injuries and in the last moment turned to the right. I flew in the air, crashed in a tree and finished on the ground," Tratnik recalls. "In the end, I can be happy that upper body is without any injuries. Looks like the most damage hit my knee and tibia."

The absence of any major injuries is indeed a relief for Tratnik and he is hoping that Jumbo-Visma can still have a successful Giro. "For now I don’t know what to say. I’m truly sad and disappointed, but on the other hand I can be happy how it ended. Car accidents can be cruel," the Slovenian continues. "Now I shouldn’t overthink what happened, but I have to focus on the future. I have great support by Jumbo-Visma and I will make sure that I will do all what is in my power to come back even stronger. I’m heartbroken because I can’t ride with other bees. I wish them all the best and hopefully this is the end of bad luck for us."