Tom Pidcock set to return to mountain biking as he skips Giro d'Italia

Tom Pidcock will compete in two mountain bike events in May, Ineos Grenadiers have announced on Twitter, with the 22-year-old finding himself with a gap in his road racing programme.

Pidcock will race in the World Cup in Albstadt, Germany this weekend, before heading to Nové Mesto in the Czech Republic for races on May 13 and 15. In fact, Albstadt represented his first-ever UCI World Cup race last year, while Nové Mesto is the first race he won in the elite category.

The Ineos Grenadiers riders hasn't competed on the mountain bike since securing the gold medal at the cross country event at the Tokyo Olympics last year, though, but this addition to his racing calendar could hint at him chasing the Rainbow Triple in 2022. 

Having already won the Cyclocross World Championships in January, Pidcock could make an appearance at the Mountain Bike World Championships in Les Gets at the end of August. The Road World Championships will come soon after in September, in Wollongong, Australia. 

The addition of these mountain bike races confirms Pidcock won't race in the Giro d'Italia this year, too. Originally, he and his team suggested at the beginning of the year he would compete at the Italian Grand Tour, but plans have changed.

Ineos announced their lineup for the Giro last week, which included Richard Carapaz, Ben Swift and Richie Porte, but no Pidcock.

The day after finishing 103rd at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the 22-year-old explored the cobblestones set to feature on stage five of this summer's Tour de France with team-mate Michał Kwiatkowski. 

Kwiatkowski is due to line up at the Tour this summer, and therefore tested out some sections of the pavé in northern France that have never been part of the route of the race before.

Now though, it seems likely Pidcock will make his Tour de France debut in July,  with Egan Bernal still recuperating after his severe training crash a few months ago. While it is unlikely that he would lead the team at his first Tour, and only his second Grand Tour, he might be allowed to find his own opportunities as well as riding in support of Adam Yates.