Italian hoping to return to racing in Slovenia or at nationals
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Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain-Merida)(Image credit: Fotoreporter Sirotti)
Giovanni Visconti on stage 10 of the Giro d'Italia(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Despite his previous wins and stints in pink at the Giro, Giovanni Visconti is riding in service of Bahrain-Merida teammate Vincenzo Nibali(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Gorka Izagirre (Movistar) marks an attack by Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain-Merida)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Niccolo Bonfazio and Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain-Merida)(Image credit: Bahrain Merida Pro Cycling Team)
Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain-Merida) will have to miss this month's Tour de Suisse as he continues to recover from tendinitis. Visconti hopes that he will still be able to race in June with the Tour of Slovenia or the Italian national championships a possibility later in the month.
Visconti developed the tendinitis during the final week of the Giro d'Italia, forcing him to abandon midway through the penultimate stage to Asiago. His teammate Vincenzo Nibali finished third overall at the three-week race, losing out to Tom Dumoulin by just 41 seconds.
"Unfortunately, I will be forced to skip Tour de Suisse in order to undergo some therapies needed for the improvement of my condition. If everything goes as expected, I will be able to ride on Tour of Slovenia or some Italian championships," said Visconti.
The four-day Tour of Slovenia begins on June 15, while the Italian national championships will be run between June 23-25, with the time trial and road races taking place on the first and final days of competition.
Team doctor Emilio Magni explained that Visconti had been diagnosed with tendinitis in his left ankle and that he would be receiving various forms of therapy to try and sort him out. "Yesterday Visconti underwent an ultrasound and a specialist examination at Florence Hospital that diagnosed a tenosynovitis (tendinitis) of the long peroneal tendons of the left ankle. We will observe the situation in the next eight days, and he will undergo a regional anti-inflammatory treatment together with physio-kinesiotherapy. After that, his condition will be re-evaluated"
Bahrain-Merida will head to the Tour de Suisse with Ion Izagirre as their main hope for the overall classification. Meanwhile, for the sprints, Niccolo Bonifazio is set to start, and Heinrich Haussler is on the provisional line-up after finally getting his season underway last month at the Four days of Dunkirk. The Tour de Suisse starts on June 10 and finishes with a time trial in Schaffhausen on June 18.
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