AG2r rider Rinaldo Nocentini was involved in a crash during the GP Insubria today and broke his tibia and fibula. Nocentini is most famous for spending eight days in the coveted yellow jersey at the Tour de France last year. There is no news yet on how long the 32 year old will be out of commission, but this is a significant blow to the French team, and an injury that will likely see him miss a large part of the season.
The Italian had a good winter, and his hard work paid off with a win last week in the first stage of the Tour du Haut Var. The team was counting on him for Paris-Nice which runs from March 7th to the 14th.
The only good news to come out of the GP Insubria for the team is that Nicolas Roche looks poised to step it up after today's race. The young Irishman finished third in the GP Insubria, and with his steady improvement has shown he has the class to pull off a big win. With five top ten stage finishes in last year's Tour de France, including second place on stage fourteen, it's only a matter of time before things fall into place for the 25 year old.