Appendicitis ends Kasper Asgreen's difficult season abruptly

Over the past few years Kasper Asgreen has been struggling to keep up with the evolution that is ongoing in the World Tour peloton, not only when it comes to the mountainous terrain but also the spring classics. In 2023 he managed to take a very popular win at the Tour de France where he showed his best level again, but 2024 was far from good and ends prematurely with an unexpected illness.

Asgreen was scheduled to race the German Sparkassen Münsterland Giro this Thursday but last minute has been removed from the race after falling ill and learning that he will require a surgery for an appendicitis: "Kasper Asgreen will not take to the start of the Münsterland Giro today. After becoming ill overnight, he was taken to hospital, where it was revealed he has appendicitis, which will require an operation. We wish Kasper Asgreen a full and speedy recovery!"

Unfortunately this marks the end of the season for the Danish rider who recently showed his best form of the year. Much like most of Soudal - Quick-Step, the 29-year old was rather absent from the action in the spring classics and wasn't in contention for a top result in any of them. Whilst in 2023 he bounced back to find great form in the summer, it was not the case this time around. He frustratingly finished second in both the time-trial and road race at the national championships and wasn't selected to the Tour de France. At the Vuelta a España he also did not manage to obtain a strong result.

Surprisingly he came out of the Vuelta with better legs and even finished sixth at the time-trial World Championships, a result that validates his quality even amongst the very best. Later on he was sent home but called back to Zurich to replace a teammate for the road race but was unable to be a key figure for Denmark. His contract with the Belgian team ends this year and whilst no transfer has been announced, he has been heavily linked to Uno-X Mobility where he may continue his career from 2025 onwards.