Wellens breaks collarbone at Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne

Tim Wellens is the latest victim of a crash-marred Opening Weekend, breaking his collarbone about 85 km into Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne. The Belgian national champion came into the weekend as one of UAE Team Emirates-XRG's leaders after a strong start to the season. But in a race already characterised by crashes by the time he himself slid across the tarmac, Wellens was unable to play a significant role for the second day in a row, and team medical staff confirmed about an hour after the race finished that the 34-year-old had broken his collarbone and would undergo surgery. There's no word yet as to how long he's likely to be sidelined, but with surgical interventions, a collarbone break is often one of the quicker injuries to recover from.