WATCH: Elia Viviani taken to hospital after being hit by motorbike

ByReuters

Updated 10/04/2016 at 20:39 GMT

Italian rider Elia Viviani was taken to a hospital for checks after his bike was hit by a race motorbike during the Paris-Roubaix classic on Sunday, Team Sky said.

Elia Viviani (Sky)

Image credit: Imago

A video taken by a spectator and posted on social media showed the motorbike sliding on its side before hitting Viviani's back wheel after the peloton was slowed down by a crash on the cobbled sector of Arenberg.

Safety has been a hot topic in cycling since Belgian rider Antoine Demoitie died last month after being hit by a motorbike.

"He is in hospital," Team Sky sports director Servais Knaven said of Viviani. "He looks alright, nothing serious but you never know."

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Race director Thierry Gouvenou told Reuters: "We contacted the team, he just has a few bruises. The rider was upset, which is understandable in the context.

"The driver was not careless. There was a crash in the bunch and he braked, then the motorbike slid on to its side and hit Viviani."

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