Key Vingegaard domestique in race against time to be ready for the Tour de France: “It is now time for a quick and complete recovery”
Cycling
Just one day after celebrating Simon Yates’ historic Giro
d’Italia victory, Team Visma | Lease a Bike have been dealt a significant blow.
Frenchman Axel Zingle, who had been in strong contention for a Tour de France
selection, has suffered a fractured vertebra in his neck and now faces a race
against time to be fit for July’s Grand Départ in Lille.
Zingle crashed while leading the Jours de Dunkerque during
the queen stage around Cassel. Initially, the damage appeared minor, but
further tests revealed a fracture in the C7 vertebra, located at the base of
the neck.
"After my fall in the Jours de Dunkerque, some tests
were carried out. It turns out that I do have a fracture,” Zingle told French
media. “It concerns a fracture in the C7 vertebra, a vertebra on the outside of
the neck. I will therefore have to pass on the upcoming competitions. It is now
time for a quick and complete recovery. I hope so.”
The injury is particularly ill-timed. Zingle had been
enjoying excellent form and was on pole position to win the 69th edition of the
Dunkirk race before the crash forced him to abandon in the leader’s jersey. His
withdrawal from upcoming races adds to a growing list of injury concerns for
Visma ahead of the Tour.
Christophe Laporte is also likely to miss the Tour de France
due to injury, thinning Visma's depth of support for team leader Jonas
Vingegaard. However, the Dutch team can take comfort in the strength of their
remaining lineup. Giro champion Simon Yates, now widely regarded as one of the
signings of the season, is expected to join Vingegaard in France, alongside
Wout van Aert and probably Sepp Kuss.
They’ll face fierce competition from UAE Team Emirates –
XRG, who are building their Tour squad around Tadej Pogacar. The Slovenian will
be supported by Adam Yates and João Almeida, as he aims to capture a fourth
yellow jersey.
Fin MajorCycling Journalist
Fin Major is a UK-based writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2024. He is the site’s main writer for FAQs and evergreen explainers and has written around 2,000 pieces for the platform. Alongside this work, he focuses on in-depth analysis and covers the biggest races on the calendar, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, providing clear context around performance trends, tactics, and key storylines.
In his reporting, Fin uses reputable data sources such as 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. Outside of writing, Fin is an active cyclist, which supports his practical understanding of the sport and its demands.
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Rafionain-Glas13-11-2026 - When Thomas gets the bullet from INEOS he can get a job as a comedian.
Senna196013-11-2026 - Right on. The more the merrier.Occam13-11-2026
- Remember, Del Toro struggled in this Tour. He is great, no doubt about that, but comparing him to a four time gt winner is absurd at this point. He has the potential. We'll have to see how he develops.awp13-11-2026
- what did Jonas gift and to whom? just curious, haven’t heard about this.mij13-11-2026
- You don't gift grand tours as it has come to light that Jonas has come to regret doing such.
Front24213-11-2026 - Exactly you said it urslf - he outclimbed del toro by 19 sec. 19SEC and you say hes alot better than del toro still lol? And can also do the same where del toro did that to jonas even and del toro dauphine numbers better than jonas all year so why this hard whats the issue its super easy stuff - del toro wasnt that before. Then factor in both their trajectory the last years and the answer is self explonatory like i said. Nothing against jonas like many do but the typing is no the wall and so stupidly easy as its so self explanatory now. Have a good daymiguel13-11-2026
- Dirty ex doperFront24213-11-2026
- As far as points go they need to take a page or ten out of the Astana playbook!Lozza13-11-2026
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