Ilan van Wilder bashes "rooster behaviour" in the peloton, blames it on Liège crash

With his teammates Julian Alaphilippe sustaining serious injuries, the impacts of the pile-up in Liège-Bastogne-Liège on Ilan van Wilder have not been give as much attention, however the Belgian rider has came out in harsh criticism - like other riders in the peloton - of the behaviour that led to the crash.

"I have no idea whose fault it is exactly, that doesn't matter. But based on the images I saw and testimonials from other riders, I know that it was typical rooster behaviour. Two riders - I won't name names - who wouldn't give each other an inch, wouldn't use their fucking brakes and caused a huge chaos. That really pisses me off," van Wilder told Het Nieuwsblad in a first interview after Liège-Bastogne-Liège's crash.

Van Wilder is an upcoming stage-racer who was eager to make his debut in the Giro d'Italia next week, but having suffered a broken jaw from the fall, his plans have been scraped off as he was left to treat the injuries.

"On a straight track in a descent where you race so fast, such crashes don't normally happen. Because common sense rules and everyone is like, 'Oh, if there's a fall here, we're in for something'. Unless someone wants to win one or two positions and dives into a hole that isn't there. Then you get something like that," he added. "Such behavior endangers people's lives and we really need to get out of it. It was one of the heaviest mass falls I've ever experienced. And never wish to experience it again."

He went on to describe the aftermath of the crash: "My teeth were somewhere different from where they should normally be. Jawbone fracture, I realized... Suddenly I heard the doctor yell, 'Hey, but that's one of us! It's Julian.' I went to look and almost passed out from the image I saw. Julian lay there, so to speak, like a 'bag of chips' among the trees. He couldn't move, couldn't breathe properly and was in a lot of pain. Everyone was deeply shocked."

As for the 21-year old, he will now have to be patient regarding his recovery. "That fracture must now fully heal. It will be five or six weeks before I can chew proper food again. Annoying. I have to throw everything in the blender and that's no fun..." he concluded.