Paolo Bettini knocks knee

Bettini looks to California

Bettini looks to California (Image credit: Gregor Brown)

Minor pain but still travelling to California

Monday, World Champion Paolo Bettini, suffered a slight mishap during his team's training camp in Calpe, Spain, when he knocked his left knee against his handlebars. The resulting pain caused a day of forced rest for Il Grillo Livornese, who yesterday skipped the training ride with his Quick-Step teammates.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Bettini's knee banged the end of his handlebars after his chain had skipped. The pain is reported as minor and he is still planning on starting the Tour of California, February 18 - 25.

The Belgian team, located in the Alicante region of Spain, will continue their first training camp of the year, finishing this Friday, January 19.

Bettini's knee pain follows similar news for his Italian team-mate earlier this week. Andrea Tonti returned home to Italy, reporting pains in his left knee. The 30 year-old is currently resting at his home in Osimo (Le Marche) for two weeks. Meanwhile, Belgian team-mate, Tom Boonen, is building for the spring classics and will make his season debut in Qatar at the end of this month.

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