Lang hopeful for Tour, Aerts out

Team Silence-Lotto is hopeful for the Tour de France despite the problems of Sebastian Lang and Mario Aerts. Lang jeopardised his participation with a hard crash during the Dauphiné Libéré's fifth stage on Thursday and Mario Aerts will miss the Tour this year due to illness.

Lang was not seriously injured, but doctors took him to the hospital.

"At first I thought he had a hip fracture from the crash, because he could not support his leg," Silence-Lotto directeur sportif Hendrik Redant told the belga news agency. "The clinic told me that the first examination showed no breaks, only heavy bruising. Hopefully, Lang will not have to miss the Tour now."

Aerts, 34, confirmed to Sporza that he would have to miss his tenth Tour de France due to mononucleosis. The Belgian had to cancel his participation in the Dauphiné at the last minute due to the flu, from which he has now recovered.

Aerts said that he had not been well all season, and that it took a long time to make the diagnosis. "That is why I have kept on riding. I absolutely wanted to go to the Tour, but it doesn't make any sense.

"I now will concentrate on the autumn, the Vuelta and the World Championships."