Sky's Vuelta team fall sick with mystery illness
Team Sky's Vuelta a Espana squad have been hit by a mystery illness that has seen five riders and several members of staff affected.
The illness, which takes the form of severe vomiting, forced Ben Swift and John-Lee Augustyn to abandon on stage three. But they are far from being the only Sky riders to suffer.
"John-Lee and Ben both pulled out because they literally could not continue, they were so ill," team principal Dave Brailsford told the news agency Reuters.
"Another three, [Australian] Simon Gerrans, and [Britons] Ian Stannard and Pete Kennaugh are all really bad, how Simon and Pete got through today I just don't know, they were suffering so much."
Brailsford said that although the symptoms look like food poisoning they are most likely not to be that because "riders and staff eat separately and we've got several members of staff sick" - including Rod Ellingworth and Marcus Ljungqvist.
"We've got our own chef, we're very vigilant about food hygiene, too."
Brailsford said one of the strange symptoms of the illness, which started to affect the team on Saturday, is that it strikes unusually fast.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
"Swifty was feeling fine yesterday" - taking seventh in a bunch sprint - "but today he couldn't stop throwing up."
Although their best-placed rider Lars Petter Nordhaug is in a strong position overall, just 1-01 down on race leader Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma-Lotto), Brailsford said their current aim in Spain is "damage limitation and keeping the team afloat."
Vuelta a Espana 2010: Related links
Stage three: Gilbert attacks to win stage and take race lead
Stage two: Hutarovich beats Cavendish to Vuelta stage win
Vuelta stage one: Cavendish leads after HTC-Columbia win team time trial
The British riders to have led one of the grand tours
Vuelta a Espana 2010: Cycling Weekly's coverage index
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Founded in 1891, Cycling Weekly and its team of expert journalists brings cyclists in-depth reviews, extensive coverage of both professional and domestic racing, as well as fitness advice and 'brew a cuppa and put your feet up' features. Cycling Weekly serves its audience across a range of platforms, from good old-fashioned print to online journalism, and video.
-
We rode and reviewed the Ouray, Parlee Cycles' first new bike model since facing bankruptcy
The storied American brand continues with a Portugal-made carbon steed that goes zoom but doesn’t fit like a race bike
By Tyler Boucher Published
-
Forget distance covered, these are the key stats to note in your Strava Year in Sport
We asked a coach how to best analyse our end of year Strava data
By Tom Davidson Published