José Joaquín Rojas apologizes for post-crash insults
Warren Barguil and the Spanish rider crashed late in Saturday's Vuelta a Murcia.
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Spanish rider José Joaquín Rojas apologized for insults and comments he made in an outburst following a crash in Saturday’s Vuelta a Murcia.
The Movistar rider was knocked to the ground after Arkéa-Samsic rider Warren Barguil slipped out on a corner in the closing kilometers of the race.
In a video captured by a fan, Rojas is seen falling to the asphalt and then yelling a series of insults at Barguil in Spanish. Barguil does not respond and slowly remounts his bike as Rojas continues to yell at him.
Rojas, who lives in the Murcia region of Spain, later posted a video to apologize for his insults to the French rider when he called him a “sub-normal,” a derogatory term in Spanish for people with mental disabilities.
“I had already had a few close calls with him during the race, and when I saw that he entered the curve off his line, I showed a lack of respect,” Rojas said in a video. “The only thing to do is ask for forgiveness when you do something wrong, and these things can happen.”
Ben Turner (Ineos Grenadiers) won the race, while Movistar’s Gorka Izagirre was 10th.
Momento de la caída de José Joaquín Rojas en la @VueltaRM, provocada por Warren Barguil pic.twitter.com/2Cs3nJiO6F
— ORM Deportes (@ORMdeportes) February 11, 2023