The second stage of Itzulia Basque Country and its downhill finish into Leitza looked as though it might herald the opening blows of the GC race, but instead the fast descent to the finish brought with it multiple complaints from the peloton on rider safety.
Ide Schelling (Bora-Hansgrohe) sprinted to his first career WorldTour victory at the end of the race's longest day, leading the way into the final 500 metres at high speed with none of his rivals able to get past on the final bends in the town.
The fast and technical descent off the gradual climb to Arkiskil lead directly into the finish town, with several riders reportedly falling on the way down en route to an all-out dash around a roundabout located just 100 metres from the line.
After the finish, Schelling was among a number of riders to express their concerns over the safety of the descent.
"It's a bit strange that the UCI allows this final because it's way too dangerous in my opinion. You see it also with crashes in the final kilometres on the downhill," Schelling told Eurosport after celebrating his victory.
"The last kilometre was OK, but just to send a full peloton in a downhill like this is just asking for problems. It's not good," he added.
"Most teams were not expecting a sprint, I believe, but still I saw it coming with a final climb this easy. It is what it is. For me, it wasn't too dangerous, and I was lucky I could find a gap in the final kilometre."
Richard Plugge, the CEO of Jumbo-Visma and head of the AIGCP teams' organisation, said, "How was this finish approved and possible? Pfew, glad nothing happened."
His team's directeur sportif Frans Maassen also said that the descent was a dangerous one.
"I think our plan worked out pretty well today. Jonas [Vingegaard] knew what to expect and just like the rest went downhill full gas," he said. "We had already warned him that it was going to be super dangerous. I'm glad everything went well.
"Such a dangerous finish is not my preference. Fortunately, it was dry and we did not suffer any damage."
The race has run into trouble over rider safety in the past, notably in 2015 when exposed metal poles on the finishing straight of the opening stage saw several riders hospitalised following crashes.
This time around, it seems as though riders have avoided similar carnage, though UAE Team Emirates rider Marc Soler is one rider confirmed to have crashed on the way down. TotalEnergies' Lilian Calmejane, who was on the attack earlier in the day, confirmed the Spaniard's crash in a post on Twitter.
Soler was taken to hospital and diagnosed with a fractured thumb, his team later reported.
Groupama-FDJ rider David Gaudu, who placed third on the stage from a select lead group, told Eurosport that it was a "shameful" final.
"It was a bit shameful for a final, I'm not going to hide it," he said. "Frankly, I think it was more than borderline."
Arkéa-Samsic rider Simon Guglielmi, who finished among the front group, said later that, "The final part of this stage was dangerous and I was scared several times. It's a pity that there were not three flat kilometres after the descent to judge the finish."
Just over two years ago, the UCI introduced a series of measures aimed at improving safety in the wake of numerous incidents following the restart of the pandemic-delayed 2020 season.
Route barriers and race finishes would be re-designed, while races would be obligated to nominate a safety officer.
The UCI also appointed a 'central safety officer' "dedicated to the safety and the supervision of safety at events" and announced that they would work with outside organisations to create a database of in-race incidents "allowing for more effective targeting of actions to be taken by the UCI for in-race safety".
According to several riders and team members at Itzulia, there's still work to be done.
How was this finish approved and possible? Pfew, glad nothing happened. Congrats @IdeSchelling https://t.co/QE0T4icGRKApril 4, 2023
