Giulio Ciccone return confirmed for Tour de Romandie with both Tour de France & Vuelta a Espana added to race programme

After surgery for a perennial cyst forced Giulio Ciccone into a delay of his season start and a complete skipping of the Giro d'Italia, the Lidl-Trek star has now revealed an updated race programme with his return to action confirmed for the Tour de Romandie.

“I feel reborn and now I can’t wait to get back to racing,” Ciccone explains to the Lidl-Trek website. “The weeks without the bike were very, very difficult. I was trying not to think about the time I was losing, but it wasn’t easy. When I started riding again, it was a great feeling. Of course it was hard, because the intensity of the workouts was gradual but always constant. It was like relighting a fuse, though. I felt the fire inside again.”

A King of the Mountains winner at both the Giro and the Tour, Ciccone also has three Grand Tour stage wins under his belt. After a nightmare few months, the 29-year-old is now confident he can get back to his best level. “Now I can finally think again about racing and setting new goals. I missed important months, but there is still time and a way to enjoy a successful 2024. Although the desire to race is very strong, I listen with confidence to my team and my coach when they tell me to be patient," he explains. "The Tour de Romandie will be the comeback, and if difficult days come, I know have to accept them with calmness; I’m still in a growing process.”

“Of course the Tour and Vuelta will be the most important races of my season and I want to prepare for them as best I can. The team knows what I can contribute if I feel good. I am super motivated to do the best for the team needs, both in France and in Spain, and to achieve great results till the end of the season," Ciccone concludes. "Anyway, there will be time to focus and to set with the team our common and specific goals for the coming months. Step by step; now, it’s important to live in the present, doing my best in Romandie and taking my condition to a new level.”