Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard taken to hospital after Basque Country crash

Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard was taken to hospital with a broken collarbone after a serious crash on stage four of Itzulia Basque Country.

Vingegaard also suffered several broken ribs from the high-speed accident that also included Remco Evenepoel and Primoz Roglic among a group of 12 affected riders.

"It was a nasty crash, but fortunately he is stable and conscious. He remains in hospital as a precaution. Thank you for all your messages," Vingegaard's team Visma-Lease a Bike said in a statement.

Six riders were hospitalised following the incident, with Evenepoel’s team Soudal-QuickStep revealing that the Belgian must undergo surgery on a fractured collarbone and fractured scapula.

Roglic was the least affected of the big name trio involved and he headed for the team car having received medical attention.

The incident took place when the peloton was descending around a tight right-hand bend with less than 40km of the stage to go, one rider sliding out of the road and on to the bank, sparking a chain reaction as more followed.

Vingegaard won the Tour de France in 2022 and 2023 but with this year’s event starting on 29 June, doubt now hangs over his ability to defend his crown.