As the Tour de France headed into the high Alps, three riders were unable to line-up for the start of stage 9 in Alige, with injury, fatigue and COVID-19 taking its toll.
A total of 165 riders rolled out of the Swiss town for the first Alpine finish in Chatel but there were three non-starters. So far 11 riders have left the race, with a number of others likely to be hit by illness and injury before the Tour reaches Paris on July 24.
Kasper Asgreen (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl), Ruben Guerreiro (EF Education-EasyPost) and Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) all head home before the roll out in Aigle and before Tour de France enjoys the second rest day in Morzine.
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The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) announced that Martin would not start due to the application of the Covid-19 health protocol.
He tested positive on Sunday morning and perhaps wanted to continue as per the new protocol. However a final decision is made collectively by the team doctor concerned, the Covid-19 doctor for the event and the UCI Medical Director, on the basis of the clinical elements available.
The French rider was 14th overall in the general classification and had completed a series of eight consecutive Grand Tours. It is the first time that Martin has abandoned a stage race since he turned professional with Wanty in 2016.
Cofidis said that all the other riders and staff tested negative.
As per the UCI COVID-19 protocol, all riders, team staff and key race staff will undergo an antigen test on the rest day in Morzine on Monday.
Asgreen and Guerreiro also depart
Guerreiro also did not start stage 9, leaving the American team with seven riders.
Initial reports indicated he was also a COVID-19 case but Guerreiro quickly clarified it was due to some kind of ‘non-COVID-related illness’.
The Portuguese rider was sharing a room at the Tour de France with Neilson Powless. He crashed hard in Denmark but seemed to have recovered before falling ill.
QuickStep-AlphaVinyl announced that Asgreen would not start, saying: “Despite his left knee healing following the Tour de Suisse injury, the recovery didn’t go as expected, so it has been decided by the team’s medical staff that he should stop in order to not endanger the second part of the season.”
The Belgian team has been hit by a number of COVID-19 cases and lost Tim Declercq before the start. He was replaced by French national champion Florian Sénéchal but the loss of Asgreen means QuickStep-AlphaVinyl are down to 7 riders.
After a number of COVID-19 cases amongst riders and inside the race bubble, the UCI called on everyone to respect the COVID-19 protocol.
“The UCI and its partners remind all participants in road races on the UCI International Calendar that the rules introduced over the last two years in the interests of everyone’s health and safety continue to apply.
“These include the obligation to wear a mask, to maintain sufficient physical distance and to disinfect hands frequently.”
