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"It was a big disappointment... We all felt that the best was yet to come" - Cian Uijtdebroeks determined to put Giro behind him as Visma confirm strong Tour de Suisse team
CyclingSaturday, 08 June 2024 at 12:00
Holding the White Jersey for Best Young Rider and sitting in the top-5 of the general classification, a potential podium looked on the cards for Cian Uijtdebroeks at the 2024 Giro d'Italia. Sadly, those hopes were ended prematurely as the Belgian was struck down by a badly timed illness.
"It was a big disappointment,” the 21-year-old reflects of his forced Giro d'Italia exit, in a press release by Team Visma | Lease a Bike. "I went into the Giro with a good feeling. Although the first part of the race was not for me, everything went according to plan. We all felt that the best was yet to come. Unfortunately, you can never wholly avoid illness. I had a fever after the rest day. Then you have no choice but to take care of your health. It was the right decision to withdraw from the race.”
Having left the first Grand Tour of Team Visma | Lease a Bike career in such disappointing circumstances, Uijtdebroeks admits he struggled to follow the rest of the race from the TV screen. "I wanted to continue supporting the guys from home, but it was quite difficult," he explains. "Our goal in Italy was to win as many stages as possible and do well in the general classification. In the space of two days, both of those goals were destroyed (sprinter Olav Kooij also abandoned through illness ed.). It was quite a disappointment. The four remaining riders fought until the end.”
Cian Uijtdebroeks was in the White Jersey before his enforced abandon at the Giro d'Italia
After spending time recovering from his illness, Uijtdebroeks returns at the Tour de Suisse, hopeful the good legs he showed at the Giro d'Italia are still there. "When I got back home, I did nothing for a week. That was necessary to recover. Then, I went to Andorra to train at altitude. The first few days, I had to take it easy. My lungs were still bothering me. Then, I took steps day by day. Now, I am back to a good level. The most important thing now is to rest for a few days, and then I hope to perform well in Switzerland”, the 21-year-old says. "Of course, I want to perform as well as possible in the Tour de Suisse, but first of all, it is a test to see where I stand. I hope to be at a high level. Wilco Kelderman and Ben Tulett also have protected status next week. So we will start with a strong block.”
“I have good memories of this race. Last year, I finished seventh in the final classification," Uijtdebroeks concludes. "I especially like the high mountain stages. I am happy to have the chance to race again soon after my illness. I'm looking forward to it.”
Read also
Team Visma | Lease a Bike for 2024 Tour de Suisse:
Cian Uijtdebroeks
Ben Tulett
Wilco Kelderman
Johannes Staune-Mittet
Attila Valter
Robert Gesink
Milan Vader
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- No, it didn't. It has been debunked by the team that there was anything wrong with his feeding. Pogacar went too early and paid the price.maaiikeen31-12-2024
- Strong team around Jonas and pray each day that Tadej forgets to eat in the decisive stages (col du Granon). It also happened this year, stage 11 when Jonas won the sprint (incredible! Tadej was empty).
maria2024202430-12-2024 - Not quite yet I’d say but she could reach and surpass. You probably forgot Vos’ 2 track WC titles that outweigh the total and it has to be said more of PFPs MTB titles are a bit far fetched than Vos but yes they are comparable. It’s strange that with her consistent participation in xc she’s never ever managed to win even one race, Marie Schreiber can at least retire with that achievement ;-)Mistermaumau30-12-2024
- He may be known as “The goat” but I can’t realistically consider him a top ten candidate taking together all forms of cycling. Vos had 28 UCI WC wins, Absalon 33, Schurter 34, MVDP 41 and counting. As far as world championships they are all ahead too Longo, MVDP, PFP, Merckx, de Vlaeminck, TP and at least a half dozen others from long ago are surely higher up, or what criteria are you privileging other than a nickname?Mistermaumau30-12-2024
- and yeah, i’m a ridiculous blowhard for writing THAT MUCH. seriously, f me…OCexile30-12-2024
- this has diverged from being a per se cycling discussion, but that’s cool with me. so i live in the united states. for background, i grew up in southern california, educated at UC Irvine and UC Berkeley, and except for chunks of a 22 year Navy career i’ve lived here most of my life. there are things about this country, the way its social, political, and economic institutions function that IN MY OPINION fail considerably in comparison to other developed democracies. BUT, one thing that i think the US does excel in is that we have an extraordinarily high level of freedom of speech. now, that certainly opens the door for the alex joneses of the world to weaponize/monetize speech in utterly disgusting ways that do actual damage. it also gives freedom to politicians to say that the press is corrupt and should be jailed, like in russia, iran, or venezuela. these are DANGEROUS uses of freedom of speech. but as much as that freedom may imperil the well being of individuals and ideas — like the idea of liberty itself — it’s that freedom that has, over time, marked the SLOW movement toward greater equality and well being. this extreme level of free speech is certainly the primary fundamental right in the united states that has functioned, over time, to actively drive social progress. i mean, quack quack quack, right? the kind of speech that MOST needs protection is UNPOPULAR SPEECH. we KNOW this. but if you can only engage in unpopular speech IN PRIVATE, as you suggested, and be BARRED from a public platform to share those unpopular ideas, then your freedom to speak means very little and the whole project of social change and social progress grinds to a halt. “YES, you can talk about all races being equal to your friends, but you can’t publish any articles making that argument.” “YES, you can say that homosexuality isn’t a dangerous perversion that must be legislated against so long as you ONLY say it to your friends, but you can’t say it on a radio show.” so the problem is, if there’s going to be prior restraint of speech, the only person I’M gonna trust to decide who can say what before they say it is ME. if somebody wants to let me and my friends make all those decisions, then i’m IN. i’d expect a little pushback on that idea though. alex jones would probably like that job, too. lance would love that kind of power i bet. sooooo…. maybe it’s better to just leave things like they are. it’s ugly and messy and people get hurt, but once you SURRENDER that nearly unlimited freedom you’ll never get it back. and yes, society has drawn lines: still can’t threaten to blow up a mosque or share child pornography, etc. — that’s a pretty good idea. but erring on the side of freedom rather than censorship has been critical in preserving valuable free speech rather than seeing it slowly winnowed and legislated away. so yeah, there WILL be another alex jones, neonazis get to deny the holocaust, and lance gets to talk about cycling all he wants. and if you don’t like the source or the content then YOU are free to rail against it, or just not listen. as always, totally appreciate and respect YOUR perspective, brother. and i do get where you’re coming from. there are individuals in the US who have (or are about to have) the biggest platform there is who say things that drive me mad because i find them so dangerous and misleading, but the american version of democracy, with all its notable failings, has survived by preserving freedom of speech in the face of these types, not by limiting it.OCexile30-12-2024
- There is a cyclist, recently retired who raced as a Junior in 1997, and is known as 'The Goat'. Downhill legend, Greg Minnaar......wipperman9530-12-2024
- The road bias of this site shows up as PFP isn't mentioned - who is as successful as Vos, and from memory has more World titles.wipperman9530-12-2024
- his wife was surprisingly accurateabstractengineer30-12-2024
- Its the wrong thing to do the Vuelta after getting exhausted in the TDF. This is going to reduce his career potentialabstractengineer30-12-2024