Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong has dropped out of the Tour of California after crashing during the race, leaving him with a bruise on his elbow and needing stitches for a cut under his left eye.
The accident occurred as a group of cyclists crashed in an area of narrow road, about 5 miles into stage 5 of the eight-day race, according to Business Week. Fellow American Levi Leipheimer was also involved in the crash.
Both Armstrong and Leipheimer rejoined the race, but Armstrong decided to drop out at the 13-mile mark.
In an email statement, provided by Armstrong’s RadioShack team he wrote “I tried to give it a go but my eye was swollen so I couldn’t see properly and the pain in the elbow prevented me from holding the bars… It was a relief to learn there were no breaks.”
He continued “It was one of those crashes that put a bunch of us down… It will take a few days to recover and be on the bike as soon as possible.”
Business Week reports that Armstrong’s withdrawal from the cycling event came only hours after he denied allegations by former teammate Floyd Landis that he was “one of many American riders who used performance-enhancing drugs in recent years.”
The Tour de France is scheduled to begin July 3, and Armstrong was reportedly using the California competition as a warm up event.
