Fabio Jakobsen included on provisional start list of Belgian one-day race, but team boss says Dutchman probably won’t be ready 

Fabio Jakobsen has appeared on the provisional start list for a Belgian one-day race, but his team boss says its unlikely the Dutchman will be ready to race.

Deceuninck - Quick-Step rider Jakobsen is still recovering from his crash at the 2020 Tour of Poland, which left him with serious injuries. 

The organisers of the GP Monseré, a 1.1-ranked Belgian stage race scheduled for March 7, announced on Twitter that both Jakobsen and his team-mate Mark Cavendish had been added to the provisional Deceuninck line-up for the event. 

While the 24-year-old is making good progress and hopes to return to racing this season, Jakobsen has recently undergone further surgery and will be taking more time off the bike. 

Deceuninck team boss Patrick Lefevere has since said it is unlikely Jakobsen will be ready to race again so soon. 

According to cycling website Wielerflits, Lefevere said: “He just had another operation. 

“He also has insufficient training in his legs. The intention is that he will do a training camp for another month. After that, we hope to gradually give him a taste of competition.”

Lefevere said that Jakobsen had been included on the provisional start list as race organisers require an early list of participants a long time before the event. 

Earlier this month, Jakobsen had surgery to have implants placed in his jaw along with further reconstruction to the scars around his face. 

After a week of recovery, Jakobsen hopes to be back on the bike soon while Lefevere said he is due to have his stitches removed on February 25.

Jakobsen’s crash happened in the sprint finish of stage one of the Tour of Poland last August when Jumbo-Visma’s Dylan Groenewegen pushed him into a barrier at high speed.   

Jakobsen suffered facial injuries and a serious concussion in the fall, while Groenewegen broke his collarbone.

After being disqualified from the race, Groenewegen has now been banned from racing for nine months by the UCI.

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Jakobsen has since returned to training, joining his Deceuninck team-mates on their first training camp of 2021 in Spain, where Mark Cavendish said he paid tribute to the hard work of his young team-mate.