"Those are very unfortunate and foolish statements" - Doctor criticises Movistar and Uijtdebroeks high fever comments as he sends warning
Cycling
A sports doctor has opened up about his surprise to hear Cian Uijtdebroeks and Movistar's explanation of the Belgian rider's fever at the Tour de France.
The young general classification hopeful has started La Grand Boucle on the backfoot right from the off. During the opening team time trial, he dropped on the penultimate climb of the 19.6km test, signalling that all was not right.
In the subsequent stages, he also lost time to the general classification contenders where on normal form he would not be expected to do so. And so, rider and team have confirmed that he is suffering from stomach issues.
Before stage 4, Movistar sports director Jurgen Roelandts said Uijtdebroeks had endured a tough night with stomach issues and diarrhoea. The issue was labelled as a gastrointestinal infection and that the high temperatures made the illness more complicated than usual.
Describing his fever, Roelandts said it was just below 37.5 degrees celsius, which would rule him out of the stage if he hit and that the team were monitoring the situation.
Cian Uijtdebroeks' Tour de France fever
“With more than 37.5 degrees, he definitely would not have started. Today it was 37.3. That is more feverish than fever, but it is on the limit.” Roelandts told Sporza.
However, Belgian sports doctor Tom Teulingkx, chairman of the Belgian association for sports and medical screening doctors, has blasted the actions as counter-productive and marked a lack of progress on athlete wellness.
“I nearly fell off my chair when I heard it,” he told Het Nieuwsblad. “We thought riders and teams had slowly understood it by now: do not do sport with a fever. But apparently we are back to square one.”
Teulingkx on Uijtdebroeks' gastrointestinal infection
Teulingkx also singled out comments from the Belgian rider, in which he insinuated that riding with such a fever was allowable due to other riders doing so in previous races.
“Cian is an intelligent young man, but those are very unfortunate and foolish statements," he said.
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In a warning to Uijtdebroeks, Teulingkx described how riding with a fever as a result of a gastrointestinal infection could cause it to spread and do more damage.
He added: “Ninety percent of gastrointestinal infections are viral. During exercise, a lot of blood is pumped around the body, which increases the chance that the virus spreads further. And the organ where such a virus likes to settle is the heart.”
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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