Luke Plapp (Jayco-AlUla) has been seen racing with a closely taped up left wrist throughout the Tour Down Under, telling Cyclingnews that he crashed in December and it has been sore ever since.
“It was simply earlier than New Yr’s, I used to be simply performing some efforts and descending my favorite mountain, Mount Buffalo, and simply got here off. However I have not missed a day of coaching and I believe I have not missed a beat in racing, to be sincere, both,” Plapp stated.
Though there was chatter on-line suggesting the wrist was damaged, Plapp stated he simply “re-aggravated” the identical wrist that he injured in a crash during last year’s Tour Down Under on stage 3.
“It is simply ligaments and sore. There isn’t any harm to it and the docs have cleared me and all the things so it is simply extra precaution than something. I discovered final 12 months after I raced for just a few months by Paris-Good and the Giro [d’Italia], it simply helped having it taped, so I am simply doing that once more.
“I had issues with this wrist as effectively final 12 months from the Tour Down Underneath crash so it is troubled me for a 12 months or so – then [the injury] is the very same spot because it was final 12 months.”
Regardless of his wrist harm, Plapp was aggressive whereas racing for the stage win on Willunga Hill on Saturday, attacking quite a few instances on the ultimate ascent earlier than finishing fourth on the stage behind winner Jhonatan Narvaez (UAE Workforce Emirates-XRG). That outcome moved him as much as sixth total.
“You can see after I was attacking, I used to be completely happy to be out of the saddle … so it is fantastic.
“I am actually pleased with how [Australian road] nationals went with a sore wrist, and I am fairly pleased with how the legs are this race. So it clearly hasn’t affected me an excessive amount of,” the Australian time trial title winner and highway race runner-up stated. “Yesterday, I used to be proper up there within the combine preventing for the stage. So actually pleased with how all the things goes.”
Whereas some pundits have criticised him for sitting behind the peloton, which might be dangerous within the occasion of a crash, Plapp was tail-gunning the ultimate stage of the Tour Down Underneath, too.
“I believe each race I am in direction of the again. I do not suppose this race is any completely different to what I used to be doing all 12 months final 12 months. I am simply completely happy cruising again there. I do not suppose it has price me this race in any respect,” he concluded.
