Tom Pidcock "not going to make a race schedule" until cause for stomach issues is found

The INEOS Grenadiers rider was set to have an incredibly packed start to the season from February to the end of May with the cobbled and Ardennes classics, alongside the Giro d'Italia. However, the plans are being completely changed as stomach issues are keeping the Briton out of competition for the upcoming cobbled classics later this week.

After having missed Strade Bianche, there were some expectations that the British talent would return at Milano-Sanremo to battle for the top places, however that was not possible as he was dropped early on in the Tre Capi: “It wasn't a stomach bug, but Tom had to go to the toilet seriously. Even afterwards, his stomach did not feel one hundred percent healthy. There was no point in racing any further," INEOS DS Kurt Bogaerts said in an interview with Het Laatste Nieuws.

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After having to miss Strade Bianche, Pidcock took on a training camp in Andorra, “we were able to complete all training sessions as planned. On seven days, Tom trained for more than thirty hours and with the necessary intensity. There were no stomach problems, but they reappear in the race. Maybe because you have to fuel a lot in a long match like Milan-Sanremo? The strange thing is that he doesn't really feel sick," he added.

“We are going to investigate this. Tom had a blood test on Wednesday and we hope that based on those results we can find a cause. We are not going to make a race schedule until this problem is solved, Bogaerts concluded.

Pidcock was scheduled to race the E3 Saxo Bank Classic and Gent-Wevelgem this week but they have been taken out of his schedule. With his Giro d'Italia participation in doubt, now also the classics period seems to be at risk - although for different reasons.