Belgian cyclist Wouter Weylandt killed in Giro d'Italia crash

The Giro d'Italia is in shock after the Belgian sprinter Wouter Weylandt died of injuries caused by a heavy crash on the descent from the Passo del Bocco, the main climb in the third stage of the race, from Reggio Emilia to Rapallo.

Weylandt fell heavily on the twisting, steep descent 35km from the finish, with one version of events stating he had hit a wall. He appeared to have landed heavily on his face, causing severe bleeding. An inquiry was set to be opened by a local magistrate into the precise circumstances of the incident.

The race's emergency services were rapidly on the spot and carried out cardiac massage and adrenaline and atropine injections for 40 minutes but were unable to save the 26-year-old.

"We are attempting to work out the precise sequence of events," the race's medical head, Professor Giovanni Tredici, said, before describing his attempts to save the Belgian's life with other doctors and with the help of the race's mobile reanimation unit. "He was unconscious with a fracture of the skull base and facial damage. After 40 minutes of cardiac massage we had to suspend the resuscitation because there was nothing more we could do.

"The situation was already desperate when we began to try to save him. I believe I arrived on the scene 20 or at most 30 seconds after the accident. The ambulance arrived after about 90 seconds but we continued reanimation attempts on the road because of the urgency of the situation."

Weylandt was in his fifth year as a professional cyclist, was looking forward to becoming the father of his first child and was racing this season for the newly formed Luxembourg-based Leopard Trek team. His biggest wins were stage victories in the 2010 Giro d'Italia and the 2008 Tour of Spain. His