"It won't be very easy for Remco to start again after covid. That may also be a bit of a surprise for him" - Wilco Kelderman sends warning to Tour de Suisse rival Evenepoel

Wilco Kelderman has been drafted into the Tour de France lineup for Jumbo-Visma after a crash ruled out Steven Kruijswijk. Using the Tour de Suisse as preparation, Kelderman has sent out a warning to his GC rival, Remco Evenepoel.

The Soudal - Quick-Step leader was forced to drop out of the Giro d'Italia whilst wearing the Maglia Rosa after a positive covid test. With the Tour de Suisse being his first race back, Kelderman believes Evenepoel may be in for a harder race than he bargained for. "It won't be very easy for Remco to start again after covid. That may also be a bit of a surprise for him," says Kelderman. "I don't think he will win 1,2,3 here."

Whilst Kelderman is the GC hope of the Jumbo-Visma team at the Tour de Suisse, balancing the ambitions of the team between the general classification and Wout van Aert's quest for stage wins could be tricky. "I hope to do a good classification, maybe the podium is not in it. It still depends a bit on how well I come out of this training period," Kelderman analyses. "Of course, we also have goals with Wout, to go for a stage win with him."

"The Tour, anyway. That's the biggest goal. But don't get me wrong: every major race is important, so this Tour de Suisse certainly is too," he continues before ruling out any potential of a two-pronged attack at the Tour de France. "That's not the goal at all. I think it's clear that Jonas Vingegaard is really out of category. I just have to do my job well in the mountains, that's the most important thing. Coming forward collectively the strongest, that is the goal."