Paul Seixas handed Tour de France injury boost as Decathlon’s team plans are hit by illness scare

Paul Seixas has received a major boost ahead of his widely-anticipated Tour de France debut, with further medical checks reportedly easing concerns after his crash and abandon at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.

The 19-year-old Decathlon CMA CGM Team talent crashed during the final weekend of the French stage race and was later forced to abandon, raising questions over his condition with the Tour de France now less than two weeks away. According to L’Equipe, further examinations after the race and a new MRI scan on Tuesday morning did not reveal anything likely to compromise his participation in the Tour, which starts on 4 July.

Seixas has reportedly completed several indoor training sessions since last Wednesday, riding for three or four hours a day. He arrived at Les Arcs last Thursday and has remained there, although he had not immediately resumed riding on the road in order to avoid unnecessary risk.

The latest MRI was carried out to remove doubts linked to wounds or haematomas sustained in the crash. For Decathlon, that is the positive part of a Tour build-up that has otherwise become more complicated.

Seixas’ expected Tour debut already carried major French interest before the crash. At just 19, he is set to become one of the biggest home storylines of the race, with Decathlon preparing to place him on cycling’s biggest stage after his rapid rise through the professional ranks.

His withdrawal from the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes briefly threatened to disrupt that build-up. Instead, the latest medical checks have put his Tour participation back on firmer ground.

The Frenchman remains at Les Arcs, where Decathlon’s Tour preparation camp has been taking place. His work has so far been limited to indoor training since the crash, with the team avoiding an immediate return to the road.

Decathlon’s wider Tour plans remain less settled. The team cancelled a press conference scheduled for Wednesday at Les Arcs, where Seixas and his planned Tour de France team-mates were due to appear.

According to L’Equipe, that decision was not linked to Seixas’ health. Instead, several other riders are currently ill and remain uncertain for the Tour, although the affected riders are not believed to be those currently at the Les Arcs training camp alongside Seixas.

Daan Hoole is among the names mentioned, with the Dutch rider having withdrawn from Thursday’s time trial at the Dutch National Championships. Decathlon therefore opted to cancel the planned press conference because it could not yet present a complete Tour de France line-up.

Seixas now appears to have avoided the worst after his crash, but Decathlon still have selection questions to settle before the race begins on 4 July. The next update from the team will determine whether the illness issue remains a late disruption or forces changes to the final Tour squad.