Many cyclists shared their feelings about cyclist Wouter Weylandt as the horror of what happened in Stage 3 of the Giro d'Italia began to sink in. Monday was a truly sad day in cycling.
It was unknown how the peloton plans to honor the fallen cyclist. In times past, cyclists have ridden the stage following a death en masse, much like the Ride of Silence. Race organizers said they will adhere to the peloton's wishes.
One of Weylandt's friends was Tyler Farrar, the Wenatchee, WA, native who now makes his home in Ghent, Belgium. That was also the home for the Belgian cyclist, and the two often trained and hung out together.
Farrar released a statement, quoted in part below from CyclingNews.com:
am unbearably saddened by the loss of Wouter today. As many know, he
was my friend, training partner, and in many ways, another brother to
me. His death marks and irreparable change in my life but more
importantly, in the lives of his family and most loved.
“Wouter
was one of the kindest, funniest, and most admirable people I have ever
had the opportunity to know and his death is a tragedy to his family,
his friends, and to the sport as a whole.”
Garmin-Cervelo's David Millar, who captured the overall leader's pink jersey on Stage 3, told the press:
“I will wear the pink jersey tomorrow, but it will be in memory of Wouter, there is no celebration or glory, only sadness. I will discuss with Tyler [Farrar], Leopard and the family of Wouter what we as a peloton will do tomorrow.”
“Wouter was a sprinter, this means he was one of the most skilful bike handlers in the peloton, for this to have happened to him shows that we are all at risk every single kilometer we race.”
Weylandt spent most of his pro career with QuickStep, before moving over to Leopard-Trek this season. QuickStep said:
“For all of us, Wouter was a friend before he was a colleague. We remember him as an honest man, always available with a smile on his face and forever generous towards the next guy.
“Wouter leaves us with a terrible sense of loss and unbearable grief. We want to remember him with arms held high, crazy with joy after a victory, like the one at Middelburg last year. This is the image of him that all of us will carry in our hearts forever.”
CyclingNews.com compiled a list of some of the shorter tributes to Weylandt at “Tributes pour in for Wouter Weylandt.”
More than 1,500 people have left their sentiments at the Leopard-Trek Facebook page.
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