La Vuelta cycling - 'Wow!' - Terrifying moment Alejandro Valverde flies through barrier on mountain descent

ByDan Quarrell

Updated 20/08/2021 at 17:36 GMT

Eurosport's Carlton Kirby and cycling legend Sean Kelly reacted like the viewers at home - at first incredibly concerned, then mightily relieved. "Oh! Valverde gets it very, very wrong!" exclaimed a very concerned Kirby on commentary. "Oh, wow! Wow! Wow! He is very fortunate. Wow! He looks about as good as you could hope for. He's catching his breath and he'll be in shock. My goodness!"

There was a terrifying moment during Stage 7 of La Vuelta as Alejandro Valverde flew through a barrier on a tricky mountain descent. Thankfully he was okay and got to his feet but it was a very scary moment.

Turning a corner on a pretty steep descent, Valverde suddenly slid off the road and under a safety barrier, out of sight, with viewers on Eurosport left to pray that he was okay.

Fortunately, the 41-year-old Spaniard not only avoided a very heavy collision with the metal barrier but also did not tumble too far down as he found himself on a dusty bank beneath the road.

Il Lombardia

Il Lombardia 2022 – Pogacar favourite but why no Remco?

07/10/2022 at 13:51

With team-mates and safety officials able to help pull him back up and to the side of the road, Valverde managed to walk away.

Eurosport's Carlton Kirby and cycling legend Sean Kelly reacted like the viewers at home - at first incredibly concerned, then mightily relieved.

• 'Absolutely enormous!' - Huge crash wipes out 'most of the field' at Vuelta
• 'That's uncalled for!' - Zeits 'clipped' in bizarre incident during Stage 6
• 'Predictable Ineos have a great opportunity to attack' - Blythe

"Oh! Valverde gets it very, very wrong!" exclaimed a very concerned Kirby on commentary.

Oh, wow! Wow! Wow! He is very fortunate.

'That's uncalled for!' - Zeits 'clipped' in bizarre incident during Stage 6

"I hope he is okay. We said dust might be an issue on roads like this, and he got a space in the barriers.

"Wow! He looks about as good as you could hope for. He's catching his breath and he'll be in shock, but he's unbowed. My goodness!"

Kelly added: "Luckily, he got a gap in the barriers. It looked like he just got between the barriers and he got up on the bank with some help."

While his race came to a sad and abrupt end, everyone will just be so glad that Valverde is okay, with his team later tweeting to say that, following tests, it had been determined that the 41-year-old had not suffered any fractures.

'Absolutely enormous!' - Huge crash wipes out 'most of the field' at Vuelta

- - -

You can watch La Vuelta live and ad-free on the Eurosport app and Eurosport.co.uk. Download the Eurosport app for iOS and Android now. You can also watch the most comprehensive live & ad-free racing on GCN+. Go deeper and get interactive with live polls & quizzes, plus rider profiles, race updates, results & more – plus stream exclusive cycling documentaries.

World Championships

‘Makes no sense’ – Blythe on ‘bonkers’ rules blocking Valverde from World Championships

04/09/2022 at 18:50

World Championships

Valverde among riders blocked from World Championships amid relegation fears

04/09/2022 at 12:45

Vuelta a España

'Happy to get out of here' - Riders criticise 'nervous' Vuelta start in Netherlands

23/08/2022 at 09:17