Giant-Alpecin rider retires from professional cycling at just 27

Giant-Alpecin rider Carter Jones has quit professional cycling, his team say "to focus on a different career path". His contract will be terminated as of July.

The American had been with the WorldTour team for since the start of the 2015 season, having made the step up from Continental team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies.

“It is a personal decision related to two accidents, one last year and one recently, and I am now ready to move on to the next step in my life," said Jones.

"I will use my degrees in integrative physiology and sociology," he continued, "as well as the experience I have gained as a cyclist, to transition to a career off the bike."

Jones isn't the first WorldTour rider to call it a day recently. Cameron Meyer cited personal reasons when he departed from Dimension Data after just six months.

Towards the end of the 2015 season, 23-year-old Campbell Flakemore quit professional cycling just one year into his contract with BMC Racing.

The Australian said he didn't really have the motivation to ride his bike any more, a feeling that strengthened over time.