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  • Hoogerland wasn't in contention for the GC so the time loss wasn't relevant to him. Having managed to finish and retain the polka dot jersey, there really wasn't a lot that the race organisers could do to redress the damage done.
    I thought that the crash that affected Ted King was neutralised but it was his inability to finish a subsequent stage within the time limit that got him cut out. I'm not sure that you would have offered him but it seems like the type of cut out that would have been repeated over and again.
    In contrast to those two incidents, Froome, Mollema and Porte were all in GC contention. Froome isn't injured or unable to continue but left without access to a bike that he could use to continue the race. He wasn't given his time as if he hadn't crashed but given the same time as the other two riders who's bikes hadn't been critically damaged.

    I think from that perspective, all three riders you example have been treated equally according to their circumstances. What to you feel should have been offered to either Hoogerland or King in order for them as to have been treated equally to Froome today?

  • Hoogerland's race was undeniably altered from that moment on. Whether he retained the jersey for one stage or not doesn't impact the remainder of the tour, nor the contribution his team missed as a result of his injuries.

    Ted King rode a TTT with a separated shoulder due to a crash, and there was a considerable timing discrepancy between the Tour's time that they used to disqualify him and other timings. No explanation given, no appeal considered despite the possibility that it the decision had been made in error.

    That's just two incidents where the race jury could have made amendments to take into account various factors. Evans getting tacks in his tyres, Gilbert hitting a spectator's dog, riders hitting badly signalled street furniture, there's plenty of bullshit happenstances that impact a myriad of different ways.

    Froome got caught up in a crash. This happens to riders all the time; whether they are in contention or not really doesn't matter. It's very rare if not exceptional for anyone to be plopped back to the top of the leader board, non?

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