CYCLING: Traeen pulls out of Tour de France following crash on mountain stage

Norway's Torstein Traeen has withdrawn from the Tour de France after suffering a concussion and multiple rib fractures in a crash during Thursday's seventh stage, his Uno-X Mobility team announced.

Traeen crashed while descending the Col du Tourmalet during the race's first major mountain stage after colliding with the back of teammate Anders Halland Johannessen's bike.

The 30-year-old rider was evaluated by race medical staff in an ambulance before returning to the race and completing the stage. However, further medical examinations later confirmed that he could not continue in the competition.

The withdrawal ends a memorable Tour de France campaign for Traeen and Uno-X Mobility. He claimed the overall leader's yellow jersey after the fourth stage and successfully defended it through the fifth stage, marking the team's first-ever time leading the Tour. He later surrendered the yellow jersey to Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar during a demanding mountain stage.

"This is really not the ending we wanted for this yellow adventure," Uno-X Mobility General Manager Thor Hushovd said in a team statement. "The rider will now enter the team's concussion protocol. Torstein has given the team a historic moment, but after further checks it was clear that he could not continue."

Traeen said he felt the effects of the crash immediately after finishing the stage.

"My head is hurting a bit, and obviously my ribs are not super fine," he told reporters. -Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk; Editing by Ken Ferris/Reuters