At least one team has been forced to change their Giro d'Italia lineup late after riders fell ill after racing in Belgium last weekend, possibly because of manure.

Multiple riders who competed in the Famenne Ardenne Classic on Sunday, including a number expected to start the Giro, have been afflicted by a sudden illness that’s suspected to have been caused by bacteria from cow pats on the Belgian roads flicking up onto the drinking bottles of the riders.

Just five of team Lotto–Intermarche's full complement of eight riders attended the Giro race presentation in Bulgaria yesterday, with three riders having been hospitalised after suffering symptoms that included stomach pains, diarrhoea, fever and vomiting, as confirmed by the Belgian team.

The sickness is believed to have been caused by the ingestion of a bacteria called campylobacter, which is found in cow dung – a substance that was present in abundance on the rain-splattered rural roads of the Ardennes at the weekend.

When campylobacter gets in your system it can result in gastrointestinal infections that last anywhere between two and 10 days, with people typically feeling the effects of the illness for around a week. All of which is bad news for those riders who intend to compete in the 21-stage Giro, which gets underway tomorrow (Friday 7 May) in Bulgaria.

Disaster for some riders has created opportunity for others and, as a result of the illness, Lotto's line-up for the Giro has been re-jigged, as reported in the Italian outlet Quotidiano, with Belgian Liam Slock being replaced by 22-year-old British rider Joshua Giddings, who only turned pro last year.

Top riders afflicted by the cow-pat pox include 24-year-old Belgian Arnaud De Lie, who won the Famenne Ardenne Classic, and had been expected to lead Lotto's team at the Giro. De Lie thought he'd escaped the infection but then fell ill while flying to Bulgaria. “He’s not feeling well, but his participation in the Giro is not compromised at this stage,” a spokesperson for the team told The Guardian.

However, Lotto Intermarché sporting director and former pro rider Maxime Bouet was putting a slightly less positive spin on the situation. “Half the peloton is ill,” the Frenchman was quoted to have said on the team website.

Other riders and teams have also been badly impacted. “We have heard that several teams have been affected and that some have had entire squads in hospital," Bouet told CyclingPro.Net. Belgian broadcaster Sporza is also reporting that teams including Alpecin have riders who are suffering the from the illness.

This social media roundup was rekindled in the heights of silly season. Every week Jonas Abrahamsen supplied us with goofy Instagram laughs, and our social media feeds were awash with Christmas jumper-ed teams. Anyone remember Visma-Lease a Bike's beehive knits?

As the new year settles in, January team camps are finishing, and riders are gearing up towards a spring and summer of racing - if they haven't already headed to Australia for the Tour Down Under.

While more serious times are on the horizon, fear not. The internet is still turning up some gold. Anyone fancy an underwater 5k?

1. The people’s princes: Yves Lampaert and Soudal Quick-Step teammates helped one stranded driver get back onto the road. But who is this mysterious helmet-wearing driver?

2. WTF is zone two? For time trial world Champion Marlen Reusser, it looks like its a sit down and a frothy coffee.

3. Robyn Clay and her Picnic Post-NL teammates hold Eleanora Ciabocco on a Calpe shoreline in an idyllic end to a January camp full of cats, coastlines and strawberry smoothies. “A couple more weeks of prep before we go racing,” she writes in her Instagram caption.

4. Lidl-Trek are also calling time on their January camp, but not before they quiz their riders on their favourite Christmas gift (we’re still flogging this horse). Felicity Wilson-Haffenden wins hands down, after taking home the Australian National Individual Time Trial title, and the first win for Lidl Trek in 2026. Meanwhile, Anna Henderson has been gifted an entire new set of kitchen utensils to use on her return to the UK - a peak adulthood pressie.

5. Pass through the Swiss town of Schöfflisdorf and you might catch a glimpse of Swiss Olympian, Noemi Rüegg on a training ride turned grocery run, eggs tucked into her EF Education-Oatly jersey – all to the soundtrack of panting breath and tweeting birds.

6. “It’s somewhere that makes sense to me,” says Alice Towers of the Cape Town roads she rode on with her brother, Lucas, under looming clifftops and unravelling seascapes. This is another of EF Pro Cycling’s ‘Beyond Your Universe’ series, available to watch in full on YouTube.

7. Taco van der Hoorn soundtracked this post with Karma Police by Radiohead – we hope that's not reflective of his mood.

8. Reckon you could cycle underwater? A cyclist’s horror story or a feat of unmatched daring? 12 minutes is impressive regardless.

9. Nothing will shame me out of Christmas day thirds. If you're recovering from Christmas indulgence, we have tips on how to get back into training and a break down on the science of detraining and retraining.

10. Welsh rider, Stevie Williams, opens up about the struggles he’s had after injuring his knee in 2019, followed by another operation six months ago. As the NSN team heads out to the Tour Down Under, Williams is hoping for a brighter 2026. Poor Stevie won't be at the Adelaide Oval this year.

11. Who needs a top-of-the-range bike when milliseconds can be shaved off from an aerodynamic head?

The final confirmation of the merger between pro cycling teams Lotto and Intermarché-Wanty was heralded as a "new chapter in international cycling" this week, however, there is a human cost to the decision.

The "unification of two historic Belgian teams", which stretched out over months, has created a squad of 30 riders as Lotto-Intermarché. The lengthy process forced riders into a rush to find new teams for 2026 or retire, with some left in the lurch.

Eight riders moved from the now non-existent Intermarché-Wanty to the new team, while 16 remained from Lotto; the remaining six came mainly from the Lotto or Intermarché development squads.

However, two Lotto and seven Intermarché pros are still listed on PCS as being without contracts for next season: Jarne Van De Paar and Logan Currie from Lotto, and Dion Smith, Louis Barré, Gijs Van Hoecke, Kobe Goossens, Kamiel Bonneu, Kevin Colleoni and Gerben Kuypers from Intermarché. This is not definitive, with some possibly already finding places for next season, although it won't be with Lotto-Intermarché, and it isn't confirmed.

A further six from both teams retired, while 10 riders from Intermarché's closing Wanty-Nippo-ReUz development squad have no team for next year announced.

It was always certain the better-known riders would find lifeboats away from the merger; Biniam Girmay, for example, moved to NSN Cycling from Intermarché, while Alec Segaert moved to Bahrain Victorious from Lotto. However, there are still riders without jobs moving forwards. That's also without fully understanding the staffing losses, with coaches, mechanics, cooks, soigneurs and others likely missing out on spots. Two does not go into one.

Twenty-six-year-old Tom Paquot, who spent the last three season with Intermarché's WorldTour team, decided to retire. He explained a bit more about his situation in an interview with RTBF: "As soon as the first rumours surfaced in July, I made contact. But the collapse of Arkéa-B&B Hotels and Wagner Bazin-WB really complicated my search. As the weeks went by, the number of riders on the market increased.

"And then there's another problem: I'm a domestique, a very good domestique, but not a leader, and there are tons of domestiques of my style and calibre who are available.

Paquot went on to describe himself as a a "collateral victim" of the merger. "Restructuring happens in every professional sector. You have to know how to adapt and move forward," he said.

"Starting next year there will be no more numbers pinned to my back," he added on Instagram. "A chapter comes to an end, and even if it tightens my heart a little, it's time to turn the page. My story as a professional cyclist ends here."

Paquot is not alone. Lotto rider Jonas Gregaard also stepped off the bike, writing: "Choosing to retire hasn’t been easy, but it’s the right decision for many reasons. Cycling demands everything, and right now I need to give something back to myself."

The new Lotto-Intermarché team will race on the men's WorldTour next season, while there is also a women's ProTeam.

Jean-François Bourlart, the new team's general manager, said this week: "Today, thanks to the unification of two historic Belgian teams, a new chapter begins in international cycling. In recent months we have worked very hard behind the scenes to build a solid project, based on the foundations of Lotto Cycling Team and Intermarché-Wanty. We are pleased that the UCI places its confidence in us for the next three years to make this project succeed."