Pogacar, successfully operated on the left clavicle

The Slovenian cyclist Tadej Pogacar underwent “successful” surgery this Monday in Barcelona on the fracture of his left clavicle that occurred on Saturday in a fall during the eighth stage of the Vuelta a España, his team, the UAE, reported in a statement.

The intervention was carried out by Dr. Xavier Mir, the specialist who has operated on, among others, the MotoGP riders Dani Pedrosa, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Márquez and Jorge Martín, and took place at the Dexeus University Hospital in the Catalan capital.

“This afternoon, Tadej successfully underwent surgery on his left clavicle after receiving the go-ahead to proceed with the operation. The intervention went without complications and he will remain in the hospital for a few days for postoperative follow-up,” the text explains.

“When he is ready, Tadej will travel home to begin his recovery and rehabilitation under the supervision of the team’s medical team,” who will continue to “closely” monitor his progress throughout the entire recovery process, the Emirati squad’s statement added.

As a result of the fall, Pogacar suffered a concussion, a displaced fracture of the left clavicle, another stable cervical fracture of the C7 vertebra and multiple abrasions, which is why he had to abandon the race while leading.

The Slovenian cyclist tried to continue but quickly realized he couldn’t. He was taken by ambulance to a health center in the town of Gandía, where he underwent the first tests, and at 02:00 CET (00:00 GMT on Sunday) he arrived at the Dexeus University Hospital.

It was his seventh retirement since joining the UAE in 2019. The last one was in 2023, 84 km from the finish line of Liège-Bastogne-Liège, when he fractured his left wrist and subsequently underwent surgery. However, he had never abandoned a stage race before.