RESULTS

1. Joaquim Rodriguez – Katusha     (4hours 42mins 54secs)

2. Wout Poels – Vacansoleil        (+4)

3. Daniel Moreno – Katusha    (+5)

20. Bradley Wiggins – Team Sky     (+20)

22. Chris Froome - Team Sky          (+20)

Joaquim Rodriguez put in a late burst of speed to take victory on the tough uphill finish at Valdepenas de Jaen and in doing so moved up to third in the standings behind race leader Sylvain Chavanel. Team Sky endured a mixed day as Bradley Wiggins finished towards the head of the pack while Kurt-Asle Arvesen suffered a hard crash.

The high-speed accident happened on a descent midway through the undulating 187 kilometres stage from Sierra Nevada to Valdepenas de Jaen after a child appeared to run into the road. It left the Norwegian, who is riding in his final Grand Tour before retiring at the end of the season, with severe cuts and bruising while his bike frame was damaged beyond repair.

The young boy was taken to hospital with a cut nose and lip but thankfully emerged relatively unscathed. The team contacted his father after the stage finished and he reported the child is expected to be released from hospital on Thursday. Arvesen was able to get back on a spare bike and managed to complete the stage within the time limit.

Geert Leinders, Team Sky Doctor:

"We have examined Kurt tonight and the initial signs are good. We don’t have any reason to think that he has any concussion to his brain. He remembers everything and never lost consciousness during the accident, which is obviously a very good sign.

"He is covered in cuts and grazes but we can treat those effectively, and his only complaint tonight has been with his left knee. We have checked over the area thoroughly and don’t feel the need at this moment for any further investigation. There is no swelling and there doesn’t appear to be any broken bones or major trauma with the ligaments both inside and outside the knee.

"At this moment we expect him to be able to continue in the race, although clearly he is going to be very sore for the next few days.”

Steven de Jongh, Team Sky Sports Director:

“It was a really hard day again. It was hot and the speed was very high throughout. The whole day it was up-and-down, there were really no flat patches.

“Brad had another good day and did a good climb at the end – it was really sharp and steep which isn’t the sort which suit him best but he did really well to limit his losses.”

(On Kurt-Asle Arvesen’s crash): “It was a really big impact and Kurt has lost a lot of skin. He’s having all the wounds cleaned by the doctor now and will then be bandaged up.

“There’s not much skin left on his knees and back so we’ll see what happens in terms of him being able to carry on but he’s going to be stiff for sure in the next stage and beyond.

“It’s not going to be easy but Kurt showed great determination to get back on his bike and finish the stage. He’s got great support from the team and we all really hope he can carry on racing.

"Kurt's main concern was that he wanted to know that the child was okay; we spoke to the hospital about him and the great news is that nothing appears to be broken – we were told he just has cuts on his nose and lip."

8 August, 2011 –

These are two young men destined for greatness in the future! Ride on, guys!