A few weeks ago, after crashing on a training ride in Spain, it looked as if Jens Keukeleire could be out of action for much of the spring, but after he was given the all-clear on a suspected broken collarbone, the Belgian rider has been going full gas.
On Saturday the Orica-Scott rider took to the start line at Strade Bianche in Italy, and after being one of many riders to abandon the race, hot-footed it to northern France to make it to the start of Paris-Nice on Sunday.
In what perhaps wasn't the best way of recovering from a tough race, Keukeleire took two flights on Saturday night, firstly from Florence to Rome, and then from Rome to Paris, and although the rider himself safely made it to the start line, one crucial piece of equipment wasn't quite so lucky.
Watch: Paris-Nice stage one highlights
"Everything went very smoothly," Keukeleire told Het Nieuwsblad (opens in new tab) before the opening stage of Paris-Nice.
"I did not have to rush and we even arrived earlier than expected in Paris. I was hoping to be in bed by 00:30, but at the baggage claim it went wrong.
"My luggage was present but not my bike. So I had to fill in many forms and still lost some time."
Unfortunately Keukeleire's bike is still missing, with the 28-year-old currently riding a spare bike that his team had brought to the race from Belgium.
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