Mads Pedersen: "It's nice to keep the leader's jersey"

Covid-19 has forced many riders to withdraw from races, with the most recent instances coming from the Tour de Suisse, but Mads Pedersen is unconcerned, claiming that his primary objective remains the Tour de France.

The Danish rider said, "the coronavirus remains, but I am not worried". Pedersen finished third in the second stage of the Baloise Belgium Tour and he remains the leader in the general classification. "It's nice to keep the leader's jersey, but I would have preferred to ride in my own time trial suit tomorrow, But it's also nice to be the leader. Hopefully, it will stay that way after the time trial, It is also good preparation for the Tour time trial in Copenhagen. This time trial is also technical, so that will be nice." he said.

Pedersen also made a complaint to the UCI race jury. "We tried to control the race, but still many use the pavement and the bike path. I know we can't close those, but some attack there as well. The UCI always says they are going to give penalties, but in the end it never happens. That is very frustrating. Many riders do follow the rules, but those others really need to be fined." he concluded.

He will be defending the leader's jersey tomorrow in the 11.8 kilometer time-trial, and is a contender to fight for the final GC with the form he's showing.