Knee pain almost ruled him out of the Tour de France – Harry Sweeny undergoes surgery to be at the Grande Boucle

Australian rider Harry Sweeny, part of EF Education-EasyPost, was forced to undergo surgery on Monday to address an issue that had hampered his form since early spring.

After battling physical problems since Milano–Sanremo, the rider went under the knife to correct an inflamed plica in his left knee, a condition that had prevented consistent training and ruled him out of recent races on the international calendar.

The decision, taken in agreement with the U.S. team’s medical staff, aims to end a period of uncertainty in which the pain flared up intermittently, derailing any sustained progress in his condition.

Sweeny, who had not faced a setback of this magnitude in nearly a decade, acknowledged the psychological strain of stopping just as the season entered a decisive phase.

The rider explained his situation after the operation, noting: “I’ve been suffering since San Remo. It’s been very on and off; I couldn’t race, I could train well for a few days and then the pain came back. Honestly, it’s been pretty tough. I haven’t had an injury in almost 10 years, if you don’t count a broken collarbone, so it’s been a difficult period to keep my head in the right place. Now that we know the cause and I’ve had surgery, I’m keen to get back on track.”

The focus for Harry Sweeny is now full recovery to earn a place in the team’s eight-man roster for the upcoming Tour de France, a goal that currently drives the EF rider.

Specialists estimate a layoff of seven to ten days before he resumes riding, followed by an intensive physiotherapy block that should allow him to join the team’s final training camp ahead of the Grande Boucle.

Team doctor Jon Greenwell sounded optimistic about the rider’s progress, stressing that surgery was the necessary step after exhausting conservative treatments that failed to resolve the thickening of the joint lining.

Dr. Greenwell outlined the medical process: “Harry developed knee pain during Milano–Sanremo and we’ve been managing it since then, but it just wasn’t settling. The MRI showed an inflamed plica, so we decided the best approach was to treat it now."

"We’d tried everything we could, but it wasn’t calming down enough to let him race properly again. The reason for doing it now is that we hope to have him ready for the Tour de France.” The rider now hopes to close a difficult chapter and channel all his energy into the French roads, where he aims to be a key asset for his team.