Unfortunately @giuliocicco1 will not race the @giroditalia 😞 The decision was taken after the persistence of covid-19 symptoms and the short time left to be at the #Giro healthy and competitive. 🎙️"My heart is broken, but I have to listen to my body” bit.ly/cic_gir
"Giving up the Giro breaks my heart" - Giulio Ciccone forced to miss home start as Covid-19 takes him out of Giro d'Italia
CyclingSunday, 30 April 2023 at 11:54
The news were to be expected but are now confirmed, Giulio Ciccone will miss the Giro d'Italia. The Italian tested positive for Covid-19 the days following Liège-Bastogne-Liège and the complications that emerged from it will have the Trek - Segafredo miss out on a Grande Partenza in his home region of Abruzzo.
“We are losing a very important part of our Giro squad," team DS Gregory Rast said in a press release. "With his innate talent and with the great condition he has shown in the very first part of the season, Giulio had everything needed to be one of the protagonists of the race."
The Italian won a stage and finished second in the Volta a Comunitat Valenciana, finished fifth at Tirreno-Adriatico, seventh at the Volta a Catalunya, fifth at Flèche Wallone and then 13th after an aggressive performance at Liège. He had been having the best start of the season of his career and was very confident towards the Corsa Rosa where he'd be a contender for the podium, however it wasn't meant to be.
“Giving up the Giro breaks my heart. I can’t find any other words to describe my feelings right now," Ciccone shared in an emotional message. "I would have faced my favorite race after the best start to a season of my career. I would have started from home, from my Abruzzo; a historic event, even unique. Everything was perfect and then… I mean, it feels absurd. I have to swallow a bitter pill and the thought of what I could have done in this Giro will be in my mind for a long time."
The 28-year old has not yet finished in the Top10 of a Grand Tour in his career, but the overall classification was his absolute goal. Having proven himself in the high mountains, the route suited his characteristics and he was set to lead the American team. In his absence Mads Pedersen will take on a bigger role as he looks to hunt for stage wins and possibly the points classification.
"On the other hand, I have to listen to my body. I have to recover in the best way possible because the season is long and the risk of compromising it would be too high. It’s a tough decision, but I have to accept the fact and look beyond it. As soon as I return to racing, I will turn this disappointment into determination," Ciccone promised.
Read also
claps 0visitors 129
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Most of these have nothing to do with rider safety or are completely unachievablevappaxbipmv23-12-2024
- Depends on how fast the Cipressa would be beforehand and in what condition Philipsen would bevappaxbipmv23-12-2024
- Some things sound crazy until they aren't, what if he's actually right? 🤷vappaxbipmv23-12-2024
- Why make a comment to state the obvious? Of course MvdP is much better at CX than Pogacar, does anyone doubt that But that wasn't his pointvappaxbipmv23-12-2024
- If you look at road alone obvi Pogacar is the better rider. But maybe MVDP is the better overall rider since he can win in three plus disciplines?mobk23-12-2024
- Correction on 2021 Olympics. It was mainly the Dutch ladies who didn’t know who was leading the race. Other teams like the Germans and Italians knew that Kiesenhofer was out front.mobk23-12-2024
- A champion turning into a sore loser. Or is he on coke again?
UltimateOpportunist23-12-2024 - If you look at the major races they’ve both been in, van der Poel had the early edge as lately Pogacar has had the advantage. It’s all on procyclingstats.RidesHills23-12-2024
- I wouldn’t assume Tadej can’t win at cross. He did a cross race, not a World Cup, a few years ago and crushed the field. It was a minor race. But he can win anywhere.mij23-12-2024
- I wonder what would happen if Pogacar attacked on the Cipressa instead of the Poggio in San Remo? Would MvdPoel still be able to follow?Ride197423-12-2024