Tour de France in doubt for Armstrong

Lance Armstrong admits his broken right collarbone could rule him out of the Giro D'Italia in May, casting doubt over his much-heralded Tour de France comeback.

The seven-time Tour winner sustained the injury when he crashed on stage one of the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon yesterday. He confirmed last night he is set to undergo surgery later this week.

Several other riders were involved in the accident, which happened about 20km from the end of the 170km stage on a section of narrow roads.

"I am very disappointed, very, especially for the Giro," Armstrong said on his team Astana's official website.

"Now the biggest problem is the pain. It hurts. We will see.

"The guys in the hospital in Valladolid were great and very nice and helpful. But now I feel miserable.

"I need to relax a couple of days, fix the problem and make a plan. I hope I can tell you more about the Giro in a week."

It is approximately six weeks to the start of that event, which lasts from May 9 to 31.

Of the greatest concern for Armstrong, though, will be his condition for the start of the Tour de France.

The 37-year-old won the last of his titles in cycling's most prestigious race in 2005, after which he confirmed his retirement.

The Tour runs from July 4 to 26 and, even if Armstrong recovers in time to race in France, the injury will severely hamper his preparation - while there will be doubts over whether it can withstand 21 gruelling stages covering a total distance of 3,500km.

After the crash, Armstrong was taken by ambulance to the Rio Carrion hospital in Palencia before being transferred to Valladolid University Hospital. X-rays confirmed the extent of the damage.

"At the end of the race, people started to get a bit excited to win the race," he recalled.

"Everybody wanted to be in the front and couple of guys crashed in front of me, crossed the wheels and I hit them over the top.

"It happens quick when it happens. It could have been worse, I suppose. I have road rash abrasions on right hip and arm but the big problem is the broken collarbone.

"I never had this before. It is pretty painful. Now we must have to see how it heals. I will go back to the US."

Armstrong confirmed his return to professional cycling in September last year. He made his comeback in the Tour Down Under in Australia in January.