Britain's Adam Yates faced a significant setback on stage two of the Giro d'Italia, losing nearly 14 minutes to his rivals following a massive crash involving around 30 riders. The incident occurred during a wet descent, leaving Yates bloodied and covered in mud after colliding with an Armco barrier at high speed.

Yates, a contender for the coveted pink jersey, will be evaluated by team medical staff to determine if he can continue in the race. His aspirations of mirroring his twin brother Simon Yates's remarkable overall victory last year now appear nearly extinguished.

The 221km stage to Veliko Tarnovo, part of the three-week race's Grande Partenza in Bulgaria, was clinched in a sprint by Guillermo Thomas Silva of XDS-Astana, with Florian Stork of Tudor Pro-cycling and Giulio Ciccone of Lidl-Trek finishing shortly behind.

Tragically, Yates' team-mates, Jay Vine of Australia and Marc Soler of Spain, both abandoned the race due to injuries sustained in the crash and were transported to the hospital, as confirmed by UAE Team Emirates-XRG boss Mauro Gianetti.

The crash occurred as the peloton of approximately 183 riders approached a right-hand corner at around 60km/h. Soler was the first to fall after losing control on the slippery turn, leading to a chaotic pile-up that also involved Jake Stewart of NSN Cycling. Several riders suffered significant injuries, prompting a neutralization of the race for several kilometers.

Notably, Jonas Vingegaard, the top favorite for the overall pink jersey, narrowly avoided the crash and was part of a small breakaway group during the latter part of the stage, finishing 21st after being caught by a larger chasing group.