The Memorial Rik Van Steenbergen ended up having fewer participants than planned as sickness swept through the peloton, according to Sporza.
The most prominent victim was Robbie McEwen of Predictor-Lotto, who ended up spending the day in bed with a sore throat and fever. The team decided it was better to hold him out of this race to recover, so that the rest of the season would not be jeopardized.
The entire Navigators team was affected, and did not start. Team Manager Erick Van Lancker registered the team on Tuesday evening with the minimum six required riders, but after flu symptoms appeared overnight, the entire team was struck from the race.
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