“There are bloodstains on the road, just there. Where you are now.”

It’s two hours since Tadej Pogačar crashed out of the 2026 Vuelta a España, suffering collarbone and neck fractures, a concussion and multiple abrasions, and the search is on.

A local from Simat de la Valldigna, a charming medieval village of 3,300 people between Alicante and Valencia known for its 13th-century monastery rather than its contributions to sporting history — it hosted the Vuelta for the first time on Saturday’s stage eight — is directing a slow but regular stream of visitors to the spot that upended the dominant race leader and reigning world champion.

It’s on the CV-675, a wide stretch of road with excellent tarmac, just metres from a gas station, and almost immediately after the end of the stage’s intermediate sprint.

A huge, intimidating-looking-but-actually-placid St Bernard dog is kept back from the now infamous spot by a fence, as it guards its owner’s lemon and orange trees.

The Athletic, along with a few residents who are conversing in the regional Valencian language, is looking for the item that appears to have provoked Pogačar’s fall, either by him hitting it directly or because he swerved to avoid it.

This article was published in The Athletic/New York Times during the 2026 Vuelta a España. You can read the full article here.