A serious crash during yesterday's training led to a trip to the hospital and now a short break from training and racing for Team Saxo Bank’s Fränk Schleck.

The rider from Luxembourg skidded with his front wheel during a training ride and crashed in a curve while going downhill. Seven stitches on the chin and a heavy contusion on his left wrist was the immediate damage, but further examinations were needed yesterday afternoon at a clinic in Luxembourg to rule out any fractures.

“I had to have further examinations yesterday to be sure that nothing was broken. My chin is stitched up and my wrist has a big swelling, but I guess I should consider myself lucky that nothing is broken. This doesn’t come at a convenient time, since I’m in really good shape after Paris-Nice and I hope to get back into racing as soon as possible”, says Fränk Schleck who is now set to race the next time in the 2009 Criterium International at the end of March.

“We need Fränk to be back racing as soon as possible and since nothing is broken we had the possibility [of sending] him to do the cobblestone races in Belgium next week, but since these races are demanding on the whole body, it’s better to wait and then have him come back 100% fit in the race in France where we should have a good possibility to make some results with him and Jens Voigt,” commented Team Saxo Bank sports director Kim Andersen.