( CNN ) -- Team Leopard rider Wouter Weylandt of Belgium has been killed after a horror crash on the third stage of the Giro d'Italia . The 26-year-old crashed on the descent of the Bocco mountain , 25km from the finish of Monday 's 173km stage between Reggio Emilia and Rapallo . Weylandt was attended to by medics , who administered cardiac massage following the incident , but he was pronounced dead from his injuries in the air ambulance on his way to hospital . Race officials later claimed the rider 's left pedal got stuck in a wall at the side of the road , resulting in him being catapulted off his bike and thrown over 20 meters along the road . Team Leopard manager Brian Nygaard issued a statement on their official website , saying : `` Our teammate and friend Wouter Weylandt passed away after a crash on the third stage of the Giro d'Italia . `` The team is left in a state of shock and sadness and we send all our thoughts and deepest condolences to all the family and friends of Wouter . `` This is a difficult day for cycling and for our team , and we should all seek support and strength in the people close to us . '' British sprinter Mark Cavendish , who held the race leader 's pink jersey on Monday , wrote on his Twitter page : `` Things like this should n't happen . Absolutely sick to the stomach . My thoughts are with his family . RIP Wouter Weylandt . '' And cycling legend Lance Armstrong also Tweeted : `` Just back from a run and got the news of Wouter Weylandt 's death today in the Giro . I 'm shocked and saddened . May he rest in peace . '' Weylandt joined the newly-formed Leopard team this season , after spending his career with the Belgian Quick Step squad since turning professional in 2006 . He enjoyed some success with Quick Step , notably taking a stage in the 2008 Vuelta Espana and ironically winning the same third stage of the 2010 Giro . Weylandt is the first cyclist to lose his life in a racing crash since Kazakhstan 's Andrei Kivilev died of head injuries following an accident in the 2003 Paris-Nice race . In the 1995 Tour de France , Italian Fabio Casartelli , a teammate of Armstrong 's at Motorola , was killed after crashing on the descent of the Porte d'Aspet in the Pyrenees . And in 1986 , Italian Emilio Ravasio died several days after crashing on the first stage of the Giro d'Italia .
Team Leopard rider Wouter Weylandt of Belgium is killed after a horror crash . The 29-year-old was riding with his team mate and the two were in turn hit by another rider. The 26-year-old Belgian won the corresponding stage of last year 's race .