Another blow for Mattias Skjelmose as he pulls out of Tour de Suisse: "Everything from here is about being ready for the Tour de France"

Mattias Skjelmose's build up to the 2025 Tour de France is not going to plan at all. From the initial disappointment of having to withdraw from Lidl-Trek's Criterium du Dauphiné lineup, the Dane has now also been forced to pull out of his back-up preparation race, the Tour de Suisse.

"Sadly, I won’t be racing Tour de Suisse either," announces the Dane in a post on his official Instagram account. "A few days ago, I shared that I’d been off the bike for about a week with a stomach infection, but that I was back training and starting to rebuild my strength and rhythm. Not long after, the illness came back - more intense than before, but fortunately it passed quickly. We’ve done a number of tests and are still waiting on some results to get a clearer picture of what’s been going on."

"After speaking with the team and my coach, we made the call not to race Tour de Suisse. There just isn’t enough time to get back to the level I want to be at," he continues. "The focus now is on recovering properly, finding rhythm again, and rebuilding what I lost. Everything from here is about being ready for the Tour de France."

Skjelmose has shown strong form this year, winning the Amstel Gold Race and was heading to the Tour de France as the big GC hope of the Lidl-Trek team. Whether or not he'll be able to live up to those expectations now though, is slightly unclear.

"This season has been a quiet lesson in patience. Not everything breaks with noise - sometimes it just slips out of rhythm," Skjelmose reflects on his struggles. "That’s what this stretch has felt like. It’s been frustrating, yes. But I’ve learned to listen, not rush. To recalibrate without losing sight of the road ahead."

"This isn’t the first time things haven’t gone to plan - and it won’t be the last. But being honest about where I stand doesn’t make me any less committed," concludes Skjelmose. "If anything, it makes the goal even clearer. The Tour de France is still the priority - and I’m fully focused on being ready."