Victoria pro cyclist Riley Pickrell’s debut in the Giro d’Italia came to a crashing halt — literally.
“A dream shattered.”
That is the way the Israel-Premier Tech team described it in a statement as three of its riders crashed out of the Giro this week, including Canadian riders Pickrell and Mike Woods. The other rider out is Nadav Raisberg of Israel. Pickrell crashed early in the fifth stage Wednesday from Genoa to Lucca, and bloodied his face and head, and Woods and Raisberg went down in another fall later in the stage.
The Giro is second only to the Tour de France in the hierarchy of professional cycling stage races. Pickrell is the first Island rider to compete in the Giro since 2012 champion Ryder Hesjedal.
Pickrell, a graduate of the Victoria Triple Shot cycling program, and Woods suffered concussions while Raisberg broke his hand in the crashes. Pickrell thought he could give it a go Thursday but it was a no-go.
“Although he felt well enough to start Thursday’s stage, some slight confusion in Pickrell was identified, and the team was not willing to take the risk given the possibility of concussion for him,” said the Israel-Premier Tech team.
It’s a tough outcome for all three riders.
“It pains me that I won’t be able to help my friends in the race, and it hurts that Mike [Woods] and Riley [Pickrell] can’t continue either,” said Raisberg, in a statement.
“But I’m convinced that even without us, the team will still achieve great things in this Giro. I’ll cheer them on with all my heart.”
Woods, the 37-year-old Olympian, was in 107th place in the individual standings, Raisberg 164th and Pickrell 169th.
The Islander Pickrell, 22, has just graduated from the junior ranks and is in his first year as a senior pro. He won the second stage last year in the Tour de l’Avenir in France, which literally translates as the Tour of the Future, and is considered the U-23 Tour de France and the training ground for elite young riders being groomed for the big-time senior race. It followed Pickrell’s 2022 victory in the fourth stage of the U-23 Giro d’Italia, nicknamed the Baby Giro. But it was an unfortunate early exit this week after having graduated to the real Giro.
Pickrell, a converted hockey player and speed skater, represented Canada in the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games and 2023 Santiago Pan Am Games.
