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The Jumbo-Visma team reveals that a teammate’s fracture was decisive for Sepp Kuss’s victory

Wilco Kelderman broke his little finger when he crashed during the fourth stage of the Vuelta a España. The Dutch cyclist competed throughout the remainder of the competition with a splint. Team manager Merijn Zeeman confirmed this to the Dutch website WielerFlits during the team’s tribute to the winner, Sepp Kuss, in Den Bosch, Netherlands.

How it Happened

In the fourth stage of the Vuelta a España, a relatively flat stage from Andorra la Vella to Tarragona, it seemed like a straightforward race. However, towards the end, the peloton was surprised by a crash. With still five kilometers to go, therefore outside the safety zone of the last three kilometers, several cyclists went down at high speed, including Wilco Kelderman.

The injuries initially didn’t appear to be too severe for Kelderman, as he finished the stage and naturally started the next day. However, it now seems that a fracture has indeed been diagnosed in the 32-year-old Jumbo-Visma cyclist.

girodociclismo.com.br jumbo visma revela que fratura de colega foi definitiva para vitoria de sepp kuss image
Jumbo-Visma’s celebration in Madrid

The team’s initial plan was to have Kelderman alongside Sepp Kuss.

Originally, the intention was to keep Kelderman up in the General Classification, just like Kuss, but due to the crash, this was no longer an option, as Zeeman acknowledges. “Besides Jonas Vingegaard and Primož Roglič, we also had Sepp and Wilco, who we knew we could use as bait… Then Jonas and Primož benefit, and we make it even harder for the opponent. Unfortunately, Wilco dropped out, but Sepp didn’t,” Zeeman told WielerFlits.

The crash didn’t prevent Kelderman from doing his job for the Jumbo-Visma team’s leaders, the three of whom stood on the final podium in Madrid. In the penultimate stage, won by Wout Poels, Kelderman was also in the day’s race. He finished 25th in the final classification.

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