Italian cyclist Samuele Privitera, 19, dies after crashing during race

Cyclist Samuele Privitera died from injuries he sustained in a crash Wednesday during the first stage of the Tour of Valle D Aosta in Italy his unit reported He was Privitera reportedly hit a speed bump lost control of his bike and hit his head as he struck a barrier He crashed on a descent of about kilometers from the finish in Aosta at a speed of almost kilometers per hour according to Italian media CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS COMHe reportedly lost his helmet in the process Race organizers disclosed the circumstances of the crash were still unclear and are being investigated by masses safety officers Privitera was a member of the Hagens Berman Jayco group The gang s director Axel Merckx issued a message on the teen s death Samuele was and reliably will be the life and personality of this gang Merckx commented This club has dependably been a small family and moments like this are unimaginable He was irreplaceable His ecstasy his spirit his kindness was inevitably a bright light to whatever room or race that he was in at that moment To lose him is devastating beyond words LEGENDARY SKYDIVER FELIX BAUMGARTNER BEST KNOWN FOR FREE FALL FROM SPACE DIES IN PARAGLIDING ACCIDENTTour de France riders took a moment to applaud for a minute during the th stage of the race Thursday in honor of Privitera It s really sad to lose another young talent nowadays It s devastating Tour de France favorite Tadej Poga ar disclosed before Thursday s stage It is one of the preponderance dangerous sports in the world I think and the menace that we are taking sometimes is too far But I m really really really sad for all his family May he rest in peace The Tour of Valle D Aosta was put on hold Thursday and will resume Friday This news leaves us shocked and forces us to think even more decisively about how to make our races safer Italian Cycling Federation President Cordiano Dagnoni noted in a announcement The federation established a commission particular time ago to develop proposals on this matter and we constantly update the regulations every year to ensure such incidents never happen again We must intensify our efforts in this direction It is an obligation we owe first and foremost to our young people to our clubs and to our entire movement The Associated Press contributed to this document Follow Fox News Digital s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter