Australia's roller-coaster Giro d'Italia adventure has taken a turn for the worse after Michael Storer, their top hope for overall success, suffered a crash on a tough, dusty day that may have severely dented his hopes of grand tour success.
Storer hit the deck with about 50km to go on the 181km ninth stage from Gubbio to Siena, that included some of the demanding white, gravel roads of Tuscany which are a feature of the region's famous Strade Bianche one-day race.
The Tudor Pro leader remounted and battled home in 25th place, but he was nearly two-and-a-half minutes behind the stage winner, Wout van Aert, and dropped from sixth place overall to 11th, now three minutes and three seconds behind the surprise new young owner of the maglia rosa leader's jersey, Isaac del Toro.
