Tom Dumoulin pulls out of first race of the season
The Dutch Grand Tour star had planned to begin racing again this week
Tom Dumoulin has been forced to pull out of his first race of the year, the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana.
The Dutch star was set to make his debut in Jumbo-Visma colours in Spain this week, after a highly anticipated move from Sunweb.
But after a season he would rather forget last year, Dumoulin has now been forced to delay the start of his 2020 due to illness.
In a statement on Instagram, Dumoulin said he fell ill over night and will return home to the Netherlands.
The 2020 Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana still has a stacked roster - view the full start list here.
He said: “The guys have just left for a training ride here in Valencia. Unfortunately, without me.
“I got sick last night and I will return to home to recover.
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“This is now the way I wanted to start the season, but we have to be wise.
“When you don’t feel well, you’d better not race. I came to Spain to build up my condition, not to break it down.
“I hope to be back soon.”
Dumoulin, the winner of the 2017 Giro d’Italia, had a rough 2019, suffering a nasty knee injury in the opening week of the Giro and being forced to abandon his plans for the year.
After a brief return at the Critérium du Dauphiné, the 29-year-old has been absent from the peloton to give himself a chance to recover.
During his rehabilitation, Dumoulin also made the major change by leaving Sunweb after seven years, joining the new Grand Tour power team Jumbo-Visma.
>>> André Greipel to attempt biggest ever Zwift group ride to raise awareness of brain disease
Dumoulin will target the Tour de France alongside 2019 Vuelta a España winner Primož Roglič and compatriot Stephen Kruijswijk this season.
The next race Dumoulin is expected to race is Tirreno-Adriatico in March.
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Alex Ballinger is editor of BikeBiz magazine, the leading publication for the UK cycle industry, and is the former digital news editor for CyclingWeekly.com. After gaining experience in local newsrooms, national newspapers and in digital journalism, Alex found his calling in cycling, first as a reporter, then as news editor responsible for Cycling Weekly's online news output, and now as the editor of BikeBiz. Since pro cycling first captured his heart during the 2010 Tour de France (specifically the Contador-Schleck battle) Alex covered three Tours de France, multiple editions of the Tour of Britain, and the World Championships, while both writing and video presenting for Cycling Weekly. He also specialises in fitness writing, often throwing himself into the deep end to help readers improve their own power numbers. Away from the desk, Alex can be found racing time trials, riding BMX and mountain bikes, or exploring off-road on his gravel bike. He’s also an avid gamer, and can usually be found buried in an eclectic selection of books.
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