July 1 was the beginning of the journey towards a new illusion of the Ecuadorian cyclist Richard Carapaz, who began the journey of winning the legendary race Tour de France.

The EF Education-EasyPost team runner fell with 23 kilometers to go in Bilbao. Carapaz collided with the Spaniard Enrico Mas (Movistar), both fell and left the race due to injuries, the Ecuadorian with a fractured left kneecap, while the Iberian has a fractured right scapula.

This situation was painful for the governing body of the American team, which hopes for a quick recovery of the tricolor.

“We keep a good mood. Well, not 100%, but 90%!” It would be better with Richard than without him,” said Jonathan Vaughters, the team’s general manager.

“Richard is not very well. He is going home to Ecuador (yesterday). He has a very small tear on the knee cap. You will recover quickly, in a week or two or you can return to training. It is not a serious injury, but it is impossible to continue the race”, added the manager.

He also hopes the Ecuadorian is fit for the Tour of Spain and insisted he regrets losing the French Tour.

“Of course it hurts, but Richard had problems in his preparations this year. It was not ideal for the general placement, nothing was certain. That’s why I think our team is well prepared to play stage victories every day,” he said.

“It would be better with Richard than without him, but the overall ranking was not in the basic plans anyway,” Vaughters concluded. (D)