"He's empty and he's got some illness" - Lidl-Trek gradually gives up on a good result for Mattias Skjelmose
Cycling
Mattias Skjelmose started the 2026 Vuelta a Espana with a big goal of finishing on the final podium. And especially after the abandon of Tadej Pogacar, the Dane would've liked to see himself in the mix for top placings, but instead he scrapes by at the bottom of overall top-10.
The 25-year-old Dane set out on a challenging task - to participate in GC battle at two Grand Tours in a single season. After a strong finish to the Tour de France where he took a solid 6th place overall, Skjelmose was ambitious for the Vuelta - but the race did not encounter him in a good spot.
Skjelmose has been losing time to other podium contenders since the very first mountain stages. And even in his strong discipline - time trial - Skjelmose is unable to turn the tides. In Monaco, he took a mere 40th place. And on Thursday, not only did he lose to Primoz Roglic and Enric Mas, but even to (at best) average time trialist Felix Gall to finish 28th.
Dealing with an illness
As things stand, Skjelmose is closer to finishing outside the top-10 than on the final podium... And his sports director Kim Andersen brought the news that a big offensive is more than likely not happening during last weekend.
"It was a big fight, that's for sure," he told TV 2 Sport about the time trial. "I was a little optimistic this morning but, after the reconnaissance, I wasn't so optimistic anymore. He's empty and he's got some illness, and that doesn't make it any better."
"It's only been the last three days that he's had a bit of a cold. We had hoped for an improvement until today, but he's not the same Skjelmose we saw in the Tour," admits Andersen.
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Mads Pedersen was already forced to drop out of the race with an illness while fellow Dane Matthias Norsgaard (dead-last in general classification by 34 minutes, almost five hours behind Enric Mas) visibly isn't fit either. Is Skjelmose perhaps dealing with the same ordeal?
"I hope not. I still hope he can [finish the race]. But I can't possibly say until tomorrow morning – whether it's worse or better. We have the doctor. He's here. We'll see. The doctor was a little optimistic, so now we'll see."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- It doesnt take a genius to understand that Pogi is 1 level above and Pogi is younger that Jonas, so Jonas will not win under ordinary circumstances. Pogi has to crack hard for Jonas to win. It doesn't matter whether you defend Jonas or not , facts remain facts. Jonas himself says his numbers are better than 2022/2023, so Jonas is more or less optimized and we are just see the stochastic variation due to other factors. I think he will retire along with Pedersen in WC denmarkabstractengineer13-11-2026
- They only raced each other during the 2026 Tour, but here's a few metrics to look at. Stage 3 (Granollers to Les Angles): Pogačar won the stage, finishing 2 seconds ahead of Vingegaard (2nd). Del Toro finished 24 seconds behind Stage 6 (Pau to Gavarnie-Gedre / Col du Tourmalet): Pogačar won solo, Vingegaard finished 2nd (losing 2:38), and Del Toro finished 3rd (at +2:57, finishing 19 seconds behind Vingegaard). Here, Jonas Vingegaard outclimbed Isaac del Toro by 19 seconds on the mountain stageawp13-11-2026
- your clinging to the past. Jonas was dropped by del toro many times last year and jonas never managed a climbing numers del toro did in dauphine last year -entire year. Trend is also evident theres no discussion your living in the past, its beent he same with jonas for many years now and only developing, meanwhile del toro is rising and developing greatly. This is all obvious stuff and im not even a del toro fan. No point discussing numbers or this i suspect you dont watch much now but rather think its 2022 still cause this aint hard.miguel13-11-2026
- We can go through metrics if you like, Del Toro, who I do admire and support, is not on the same level as Jonas just yet. You will see that in early 2027 if they have any crossover races. I do hope they both race the Giro. You are correct though, Jonas is getting older and will not be able to hand on much longer. I see 2027 as a good year for him. Obviously behind Tadej though.awp13-11-2026
- What wins? Are you LA operating under a pseudonym?mij13-11-2026
- My point is this - Tadej, Remco, Seixas are all the outliers. Many riders don’t hit their peak until 28. It’s way too early to write him off. And the pogi slo guy that hates him - he’s also immature. Ayuso needs time.mij13-11-2026
- Then you need to use ur eyes or head if you have cause del toro already dropped jonas two times and beat him in tdf stages already this year.. Del toro climbed(dauphine) better numbers than jonas did all year too. So ur feelings and wishful thinking doesnt amtter del toro himself has already surpassed jonas infact just facts. Its also very evident for anyone objective that Jonas is declining alot, its just the truth and super obvious.miguel13-11-2026
- None of those victories stand, so there's that,wrsty13-11-2026
- No surprise there; it is British Sycling, yes, with an S
Rafionain-Glas12-11-2026 - I like Del Toro but he's not on the level of Jonas, by a large margin.awp12-11-2026
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