Vincenzo Nibali has successfully undergone surgery to remove a metal plate attached to his collarbone after crashing in the Olympic Games road race last summer.

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Nibali was one of a number of riders to crash on the precipitous descent in the Olympic Games road race last August, suffering a double fracture of his left collarbone when he hit the deck alongside Colombian Sergio Henao with 10km remaining.

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The Italian had surgery on the collarbone to have the plate put in place shortly after the crash, and after competing with the metalwork in place for the whole of the 2017 season, has now had it removed, certainly saving him a few grams heading into next year.

Dr. Carlo Guardascione, head of the medical staff at Bahrain-Merida, said that Nibali would be out of action for eight to 10 days, having finished his 2017 season at the Taiwan KOM Challenge.