The Tour of Turkey has hit headlines this week, but it has also brought attention for less positive reasons. The sprint finishes have been heavily criticized due to their danger, and former pro Nacer Bouhanni is looking for a millionaire compensation from a crash in this race that ended his career.
The Frenchman raced for Arkéa Samsic at the time, when he crashed on the second stage of the race. In the final meters of the day, a pedestrian walked on the road nearing the bunch sprint. Bouhanni, who has experienced a lot of bad luck in the twilight years of his career, was not able to avoid hitting the person on the road and suffered several fractured vertebrae.
"This fall destroyed my career at the moment when I was back almost at my best level. Afterwards, I was never the same psychologically and even physically on a bike," Bouhanni told L'Équipe. He is currently in the process of seeking a €2..7 million euro compensation for this crash.
But not only Bouhanni, Arkéa - B&B Hotels also demand a €4.2 million compensation not only because of the direct consequences of the crash, but the effects that it has on the team's ability to score UCI points which put the team in an even more difficult decision to continue at World Tour level.