Following his crash at the Tour de France, Simon Gerrans has withdrawn from the Olympics.

The Australian has posted the following message on his Facebook page:

Hi everyone,

I am a proud Australian and as an athlete there is no greater honour than representing your country at the Olympic Games. 

Following my crash in stage 12 of the Tour de France resulting in a broken clavicle, with enormous regret I would like to in form you of my decision to withdraw from the Australian team for the Rio Olympic Games. 

From the moment I got back on my bike after crashing, I knew I hurt myself. Immediately I understood what that meant for the remainder of the Tour de France and Olympic Games. Hanging onto the smallest amount of hope my injuries weren’t as severe as I feared, I pushed myself to finish the stage.

X-rays after the stage finish revealed the fracture in my left clavicle I suspected, putting a premature end to my Tour de France. I then travelled to Barcelona to see a specialist orthopaedic surgeon to fully understand the extent of the fracture and whether there was any chance I could recover in time to join the Australian team for the Olympic Games. 

I had my surgery on Saturday morning and although the fracture was complicated due to the two previous breaks I have had in the same clavicle, I am pleased to report that the operation went as well as I could have hoped. The surgeon was optimistic of a full and quick recovery. 

My goal at the Olympic Games was to get the best result possible for Australia. With my current injury my preparation would be seriously jeopardised, and so to my performance at the Games. For Australia to have the best chance to achieve the best result possible, I feel I should be replaced by one of the riders in the squad.

I wish my Orica-BikeExchange teammates the best for the remainder of the Tour de France, and like all of Australia I will be right behind the Australian Olympic Team in Rio.

Yours sincerely, Simon.