"I had to stop training for three or four days" - Juan Ayuso hit with illness before Tour de France but remains positive
Cycling
Juan Ayuso will lead Lid-Trek at the 2026 Tour de France, but has seen his preparations for the race interrupted by a last minute injury. The 23-year-old finished fourth overall at last month's Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes but picked up an illness in the race's final weekend.
The Spanish climber turned heads by attacking on both stage 7 and 8's mountain-top finishes to finish second place only behind Isaac del Toro, putting himself in a strong position just three weeks out from the Grand Depart.
It's been an injury-disrupted season for Ayuso. He crashed out of Paris-Nice before an illness interrupted his Itzulia Basque Country - leading to him taking a period off the bike before his Auvergne return.
And Ayuso was once again taken off the bike before heading to Barcelona, but accepts that all is well as he looks to find his top shape this month. With Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard the favourites for the yellow jersey, Ayuso finds himself among the podium competitors also including paul Seixas, Remco Evenepoel and Florian Lipowitz.
“It didn't go as well as I had hoped, but considering the circumstances, I am in good shape," Ayuso told Wielerflits.
Ayuso on illness after Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
"After the Tour of the Basque Country, I had some health problems which kept me out of racing for a long time. Then I also fell ill during the Dauphiné [Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, ed.].”
The Spaniard insisted he's feeling good after Thursday's Team Presentation, and is taking the Grand Boucle in his stride: “The recovery was difficult, but I have been feeling good again for the last two weeks. I am happy to be here in the form I am in now. I am going to take it as it comes. I think I got the most out of it given the circumstances."
Going into the finer details, Ayuso started Auvergne's final stage with a headache. The illness deteriarated, but it thankfully coincided with a planned period of rest. Although not ideal, he's looking on the bright side.
Juan Ayuso suffered an illness at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Lidl-Trek leader looking on bright side
“I felt it Saturday evening. Sunday morning I had a headache. I am glad I was still able to ride a reasonably good stage. After that, I had to stop training for three or four days. I would have done that anyway, because normally that is a rest period," Ayuso said.
“If I had to choose a moment to get sick, it was then. I remain positive. I haven't lost as much if I had gotten sick now."
Read also
His Lidl-Trek team includes Mattias Skjelmose, Derek Gee-West and Quinn Simmons when it comes to climbing support, and he's battening down the hatches for a fast and furious opening week, before a decisive finale in the Alps.
He added: “It is difficult to say. I can still improve during the race. The hardest part is at the end. I mainly have to survive the first week. The Alps will ultimately be decisive. Hopefully, I will be in good shape by then."
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Welcome to the off-season.
santiagobenites02-11-2026 - guillaume martin is wuite a surprise as a gc rider.Ketterechts02-11-2026
- Who cares what Bruyneel thinks. He and his best mate Lance, the biggest fraud in the history of sport, have no place commenting on anything but how to lie and cheat!whit2pet02-11-2026
- Eeesh!Lozza02-11-2026
- bravo! a rider likes jonas needs motivation and he needs to believe in being able to reach goals. he - like anybody else in the world - doesn't believe that he can win the tdf with pogi present. and what's it worth for when pogi is not there? second class victory only. he has checked all three grand tours, so what is left if not retire? the classics! go for it, jonas!Ketterechts02-11-2026
- i am sure that under the pretext of medical examination a lot worse has happened when they were under.abstractengineer02-11-2026
- dude, Lemond never even was in the same race as Armstrong. He throws all these aspersions on other American riders who might usurp his throne as the greatest ever American racer. He doesn't say a single thing about (foreign) dopers who he actually raced against. Biggest douchebag move ever. I used to revere that guy, now I despise him. His actions are so weird.fatsupermodel02-11-2026
- This is just stupid, You do what you are good at not what you are weak at. He has no results to speak of when he participated. Even Froome, Conatdor had very little. With Pogi there he wont win none of the classics. he is already 30+ with a few years left at the top. It takes years to get good at classics. Is that really worth the effort???abstractengineer02-11-2026
- Sure, little fella.awp02-11-2026
- You'll be the ongoing joke of 2027 with anything you post here!frieders302-11-2026
Loading
2 Comments