Additional Jonas Vingegaard injury update: Tour de France defence may be in doubt

Jonas Vingegaard is still hospitalized in Spain following a severe crash during the Tour of Basque Country. He fractured his collarbone and ribs in the accident involving other prominent riders. The Visma-Lease A Bike team announced on Friday that additional examinations showed Vingegaard also sustained a pneumothorax and a pulmonary contusion.

A collapsed lung, medically known as pneumothorax, occurs when air enters the pleural cavity. That is the space between the lung and the ribcage. While a small pneumothorax may be asymptomatic, a larger one can compress the lung, leading to its collapse.

Injury or trauma, such as a chest injury can lead to pneumothorax, which given his violent crash, explains it.

Tour de France?

While his condition is described as stable and he had a positive night, the Dane continues to receive treatment at a hospital in Vitoria, northern Spain.

There’s just three months before Vingegaard is set to defend his title against rival Tadej Pogačar. However the latest update certainly is bad news for his preparation.

If the pneumothorax is minor, it typically resolves on its own as the leak heals. The trapped air is gradually reabsorbed by the body. That process that usually takes one-two weeks. For larger pneumothoraxes, excess air may be removed through either aspiration, which involves inserting a needle into the chest to withdraw air using a syringe, or by inserting a chest drain, a small plastic tube placed through the chest wall to allow air to escape but not re-enter, facilitating lung reinflation.

The chest tube remains in place until the air leak is resolved and the lung reinflates, typically requiring hospitalization for at least one to two days, depending on treatment response.

Vingegaard’s spring thus far has been impressive

The setback for the 27-year-old comes after a strong spring campaign. He won the overall at Tirreno-Adriatico, along with two stage wins and the mountains jersey. Vingegaard also dominated the O Gran Camiño – The Historical Route, winning three stages and the mountains and points competition.

Watch and listen to the moment Tadej Pogačar knew he had lost the Tour

Fans were looking forward to watching Vingegaard and Pogačar battle it out in the 2024 Tour de France. In 2023, Pogačar broke his wrist at Liège-Bastogne-Liège which severely affected his lead-up to the race. He had to take several weeks off riding and then didn’t have the same preparation races he would normally do to be at peak form. Although he initially seemed to be able to compete against Vingegaard, he would spectacularly blow up on Stage 17 and lose valuable time. He would end up second overall, but many wondered what would have happened if he had been able to train and race unhindered prior to the TdF.

More woes for Visma – Lease a Bike

Vingegaard’s crash comes as a double blow to his Visma – Lease a Bike this week. At Dwars door Vlaanderen, Wout van Aert crashed and had to withdraw. The team later posted that the Belgian suffered a broken collarbone and several broken ribs. Although It is unclear how long his recovery will take. Visma – LAB confirmed he will definitely miss Paris-Roubaix and the Amstel Gold Race.