Tom Dumoulin abandons Giro d'Italia on stage 11
Tom Dumoulin gets off his bike and into the team car at a feed stop on stage 11 of the Giro d'Italia
The Giro d'Italia suffered its second major abandonment in two days, although the departure of Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Alpecin) midway through stage 11 was not much of a shock.
The Dutchman has reportedly been suffering from saddle sores in recent days and climbed off the bike at the feed zone and hopped into the team car.
Dumoulin wore pink for six days at the start of the Giro - winning the opening time trial in front of adoring fans in Apeldoorn, although he temporarily relinquished it to Marcel Kittel after stage three.
Tom Dumoulin's Giant Propel TT bike
A challenging stage four saw Dumoulin finish second and move back into the pink jersey but the 25-year-old capitulated on the stage eight climb of Alpe di Poti en route to Arezzo.
He dropped 2-51 on the day and could only manage 15th place in the following day's time trial. Back in the saddle after the rest day, Dumoulin dropped a further 13 minutes on stage 10 to Sestola and looked disconsolate after the stage as his sores had not cleared up.
Dumoulin's next race will be the Tour of Poland, which starts on July 12, as he builds fitness and form for the Rio Olympic Games.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
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
Stuart Clarke is a News Associates trained journalist who has worked for the likes of the British Olympic Associate, British Rowing and the England and Wales Cricket Board, and of course Cycling Weekly. His work at Cycling Weekly has focused upon professional racing, following the World Tour races and its characters.