MADRID — The Tinkoff Saxo team is seeking compensation from Spain’s Vuelta organizers for an accident involving Peter Sagan and a motorcycle that caused its rider to fall and retire during last weekend’s eighth stage of the race.
A statement by Tinkoff Sports — the team’s managing company — on Wednesday said the impact caused Sagan "severe injuries" and damaged "a rider on which the team’s success in the Vuelta depended in large part."
The team is asking race organizer Unipublic for a public apology and a sum "equal to the value of the prize" for a stage victory to be paid to a charity of Tinkoff and Sagan’s choice.
Sagan was hit at speed from behind by a following motorcycle last Saturday and instead of receiving immediate assistance was left lying on the road.
"The motorcycle carelessly and improperly tried to overtake the reduced peloton at very high speed about 8 kilometres (five miles) from the finish line apparently in an attempt to reach the leading three riders a few seconds in front," Tinkoff’s statement said.
The team was seeking "proper indemnification" because the race organizer "has accountability for the safety of its event," the statement said.
Unipublic declined to comment, while Spain’s cycling federation said it was a case between two independent entities within the sport and could be resolved amicably or by going through Spain’s courts.
The federation said it was unusual for a sports team to seek compensation from an organizer for damages that allegedly caused a participant not to win.
Tinkoff also called on the UCI riders’ union to revoke the fine it had imposed on Sagan for "behaviour that damages the image of cycling."
After getting up from the road, Sagan was seen to lose his temper with the motorcyclists as they sped away.
Belgian rider Kris Boeckmans was left in an induced coma after suffering a concussion and facial fractures from another crash during the accident-ravaged eighth stage.
American Tejay van Garderen fractured his shoulder in that crash and withdrew from the race along with French sprinter Nacer Bouhanni and Ireland’s Daniel Martin, who was third in the general classification when he too was sent to the hospital.
Jasper Stuyven of Belgium won Saturday’s stage despite also going down in the accident that affected Boeckmans.