Disaster strikes as Peter Sagan crashes out of final Paris-Roubaix

Peter Sagan didn’t see the velodrome of his final Paris-Roubaix.

The 2018 Roubaix champion was forced to abandon the race Sunday after being caught in a crash on the second strip of cobbles at 151km to go.

Sagan was sent tumbling into the left-hand ditch when a half-dozen riders came crashing down in the front quarter of the peloton. He was soon back to his feet but looked dazed and appeared to have a cut on his head.

He was transported to a hospital in Cambrai and diagnosed with a concussion. TotalEnergies stated after the race “the results of the additional examinations taken at the hospital are reassuring.”

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The early exit sees Sagan end his final cobblestone classics campaign with DNFs at both Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.

The 33-year-old was caught in the huge crash at De Ronde last weekend that also derailed Wout van Aert and left the Belgian nursing injuries through to Sunday’s “Hell of the North”.

The 2023 season marks Sagan’s last in the WorldTour.

The triple world champion confirmed earlier this year he would step away from top-level road racing at the end of the season to focus on gravel racing and a push at the 2024 mountain bike Olympics.

Sagan’s TotalEnergies teammates Daniel Oss and Maciej Bodnar also left the race Sunday after being caught in a separate crash just minutes after the Slovakian came down.