'It's horrible for us. He is a great champion' — Team DSM react to Romain Bardet leaving Giro d'Italia

Frenchman forced to leave race after falling ill

Romain Bardet
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Professional cycling is a cruel sport. At the beginning of this week, Romain Bardet was justifiably talking up his prospects of finishing high on general classification at this Giro d'Italia. Days later, he was reduced to throwing up on the bike, unable to continue.

You don't see this often in football or cricket, athletes forcing themselves onto the field while vomiting. It isn't fair, cycling isn't fair. It isn't the first time that illness has forced someone out of a bike race, but it doesn't feel any more fine. Bardet might not have been denied his continued participation in a bizarre manner like Biniam Girmay, but is still out nonetheless.

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Adam Becket
News editor

Adam is Cycling Weekly’s news editor – his greatest love is road racing but as long as he is cycling on tarmac, he's happy. Before joining Cycling Weekly he spent two years writing for Procycling, where he interviewed riders and wrote about racing, speaking to people as varied as Demi Vollering to Philippe Gilbert. Before cycling took over his professional life, he covered ecclesiastical matters at the world’s largest Anglican newspaper and politics at Business Insider. Don't ask how that is related to cycling.