In the final of the GP la Marseillaise yesterday Lars Bak crashed heavily, which resulted in an injury of his wrist.

Yesterday evening he went to hospital together with sports director Marc Wauters and a fracture in the scaphoid was identified. The scans were checked by doctor Toon Claes and after consultation with team doctor Jan Mathieu it was decided that a small operation will have to take place tomorrow morning by doctor De Schrijver in the hospital of Herentals.

Because it isn’t a displaced fracture, a small screw will be placed in the bone, that should make sure that the bones are pressed together. The alternative – six weeks in plaster – would take him a much longer recovery. After the surgery Lars has to leave the bike aside for one week, after that the training can cautiously be resumed. The Belgian opening weekend will probably come too soon, but the rest of the classics can be feasible.

Jonas Van Genechten will replace Lars Bak in the Etoile de Bessèges which starts on Wednesday.