Jan Tratnik was the first rider to abandon the
Giro d'Italia, as he succumbed to the injuries sustained on the opening stage - leaving him battered and bruised, and eventually leaving
Bahrain - Victorious with a rider less before the start of the crucial stages.
On his website, Tratnik talked about the experience after he fell on the opening day near the base of the climb to Visegrád. Alongside Harm Vanhoucke, they were the worst affected, and the Slovenian abandoned at the start of stage three after suffering through the time-trial. “Unfortunately, Giro ended way too soon for me. The consequences of the crash in the first stage are too severe to continue. X-rays show I have a broken wrist (scaphoid) and my hand is not useful," he said.
He went on to describe how he tried to remain in the race, but his body didn't allow him to safely ride in a peloton: "I tried to do the ITT and hope for the best, but my wrist got swollen through the night, I didn’t sleep at all, and I knew it will be a tough day. I still tried and did my best, but the pain was too much. I don’t have any strength in my arm, I’m not even capable to pull the brakes and hold the handlebar properly. By continuing I would only risk another crash, which could have been even worse," he added.
Tratnik came to the Giro d'Italia as a high-level domestique for the Bahrain team, with Pello Bilbao, Mikel Landa, Wout Poels and Santiago Buitrago all capable of riding at a high level in the high mountains. This comes as a blow to the team's ambitions early on as they loose a crucial domestique. Tratnik had ridden a surprisingly strong spring campaign finishing ninth at Milano-Sanremo and Dwars door Vlaanderen, and 12th at Tour des Flandres and Amstel Gold Race.
"It was very difficult to step off the bike and abandon the race because I put so much effort into preparations for this Giro. Also, my legs felt great the first day. However, I know it was the right decision because there will be plenty of races. My goal now is to heal as soon as possible to come back even stronger. I wish all the best to my team, and I believe they will succeed in the end," he concluded.
