"I fell during Paris-Nice, on the stage to Orléans, during the echelons. A rider fell in front of me, I couldn't avoid him. I had a big pain in my back at the time but it went away gradually. I got to the finish of the stage: as soon as I could pedal, I said to myself, I'm going! On the morning of the time trial, I had X-rays which revealed nothing. With the team, we decided to continue because I wanted to shine on the last weekend. Finally, on Saturday evening we decided not to race the next day, as the pain was still there. This week, the MRI revealed a small fracture. In my programme I was supposed to be off at this time, so I will take a few more days off before I start training again. There is nothing to worry about."
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