21.07 Italian Rider Dies After Crash at Moscow Raceway

MOSCOW, July 21 (R-Sport) - Italian superbike rider Andrea Antonelli died Sunday after a crash in torrential rain at the Moscow Raceway, police told RIA Novosti.

Antonelli, a 25-year-old rider from Brescia, was one of three people hurt in a crash on the opening lap of the second race of the day at the circuit.

"The Italian rider has died from his injuries," a police spokesperson said.

Investigators said they believed Antonelli had struck a trackside fence, but footage of the incident posted online shows a multi-bike crash on the back straight of the track in which Antonelli appears to fall and be struck by another rider.

Antonelli rode a Kawasaki bike for Team Goeleven in the World Supersport category, a support series for the main Superbike World Championship. He made his debut in international bike racing in 2005.

He is the first rider to die at a superbike event since Britain's Craig Jones suffered fatal head injuries in a crash at the Brands Hatch circuit in 2008. Antonelli is the first person to die at an event at Moscow Raceway.

The rest of Sunday's race program was cancelled.

In the first Superbike World Championship race, Marco Melandri won for BMW in a wet race that featured several crashes.

The championship was being held at Moscow Raceway for the second year running. Last year, it was one of the first events held at the track, which opened in May 2012 around 80 kilometers north-west of the Russian capital.