Chris Froome (Sky) has lost a crucial member of his Tour de France team as Edvald Boasson Hagen has been forced to abandon the race. Having been taken down in a big crash in today's 12th stage, the sprinter suffers a fracture to his right scapula and will now head home to Norway.

Much has been said about Team Sky's ability to support Chris Froome at the Tour de France in the wake of the team'd dramatic collapse on Sunday's stage in the Pyrenees. Those discussions will certainly not fade away as it has been confirmed that one of the team's crucial riders Edvald Boasson Hagen has been forced to abandon the race.

Despite the team's aim of fully supporting Froome, the Norwegian has been allowed to mix it up in the sprints and he took a solid 2nd place in Marseille last week. That decision to also chase sprint success may now prove costly as the Norwegian was involved in a crash in today's 12th stage during the fierce battle for positions.

William Bonnet (FDJ) was the first to come down and Boasson Hagen was unable to avoid the Frenchman. He was seen rolling across the line some time after stage winner Marcel Kittel, his shoulder clearly hurting.

Further examinations have shown that the Norwegian has fractured his right scapula (shoulder blade) and while he will be allowed to return to the bike in a not too distant future, he is unable to continue in the Tour.

"After the crash Edvald was taken to a local medical centre for x-rays which revealed he had a fracture of his right scapula (shoulder blade)," team doctor Alan Farrell says. "Fortunately this doesn’t require surgery but Edvald will return home to Norway for further investigation and treatment and we look forward to seeing him racing again sometime over the summer."

The loss means that Sky only have 7 riders left as Vasil Kiryienka finished outside the time limit on Sunday. However, team principal Dave Brailsford is confident that it will be enough to support Froome in the hard Alpine stages.

"It’s a real shame for Edvald and a setback for the team that he’s been forced to abandon the race," he said. "It’s never nice to lose a rider of Edvald’s ability, but ultimately we’re still confident that with the riders we’ve got left we can pull together and see the race through. The plan doesn't change and we will do everything we can to support Chris."

The loss of Boasson Hagen will already be felt in tomorrow's flat stage. You can follow the action at 14.00 on CyclingQuotes.com/live.