Julian Alaphilippe has been cleared to start training on the rollers, boosting his chances of defending his world title at the UCI Road World Championships in Australia on September 25.
The QuickStep-AlphaVinyl rider crashed out of the Vuelta a España on Wednesday, dislocating his shoulder. A scan carried out in Belgium on Friday revealed no further damage, allowing him to return to training.
“The scan has revealed there is no further damage than the dislocation originally diagnosed, meaning that Julian can begin mobilising the shoulder immediately, as well as training on his rollers,” the QuickStep-AlphaVinyl team said.
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“Should the movement and the pain be manageable, he then should be able to start full training in the not-too-distant future.”
Alaphilippe was left holding his right shoulder and in pain after crashing on a slippery corner during the stage to Cabo de Gata. He has endured a series of nasty crashes this season and caught COVID-19 in the summer after missing the Tour de France due to a lack of form.
QuickStep-AlphaVinyl boss Patrick Lefevere was initially pessimistic about Alaphilippe’s chances of recovering in time to travel to Australia but French national coach Thomas Voeckler is more hopeful and willing to wait for Alaphilippe before naming his final team later in September.
“It was a hard fall, but luckily there are no fractures. Although time is not on our side. I hope he can recover as soon as possible so that we can also draw our conclusions,” Voeckler told the AFP news agency.
France has eight places in the men’s road race plus an extra place for defending world champion Alaphilippe.
Voeckler defended France’s ambitions even if Alaphilippe is not present or competitive in Australia. Possible team leaders include Benoît Cosnefroy and Christophe Laporte.
“The French team will start the world championships with well-established ambitions, but I don’t want to make a fuss about saying that we approach the race with the same idea in mind whether Julian is there or not,” Voeckler argued.
