Giulio Ciccone will make a belated begin to his 2024 season on the Tour de Romandie subsequent week after surgical procedure on a saddle sore ruined the opening months of his marketing campaign.
The Italian has already been dominated out of the Giro d’Italia, which had been his preliminary goal for 2024, however his Lidl-Trek workforce has indicated that he’ll now journey each the Tour de France and Vuelta a España.
Ciccone spent a month off the bike after present process surgical procedure to take away a perineal cyst in early February. He returned to coaching in mid-March, when he additionally confirmed that he wouldn’t journey the Giro this season.
After 4 weeks on the bike, he has been given the all-clear to return to racing on the Tour de Romandie.
“I really feel reborn and now I can’t wait to get again to racing,” Ciccone stated on Friday.
“The weeks with out the bike have been very, very tough. I used to be attempting not to consider the time I used to be dropping, however it wasn’t straightforward.
“When I began driving once more, it was an important feeling. Of course it was laborious, as a result of the depth of the exercises was gradual however at all times fixed. It was like relighting a fuse, although. I felt the fireplace inside once more.”
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Lidl-Trek’s Head of Performance Josu Larrazabal confirmed that Ciccone has now been added to their Tour de France roster, the place he’ll line up alongside Tao Geoghegan Hart. Ciccone received the king of the mountains jersey ultimately 12 months’s Tour de France, having beforehand worn the yellow jersey on the race on his debut in 2019.
The 29-year-old Italian can also be set to return to the Vuelta a España for the primary time since his 2021 debut was ended by a crash at first of the ultimate week. Skjelmose is already pencilled in race the Vuelta for Lidl-Trek.
“When we determined to rule out the choice of racing the Giro d’Italia, the primary thought was to incorporate him on the roster for the Tour de France. The suggestions on his bettering situation now permits us to verify this selection,” Larrazabal stated.
“His contribution to our workforce ambitions, beginning with supporting Tao in his GC problem, shall be tremendous necessary. The unity and teamwork of our strongest riders shall be our best energy. An identical scenario will then apply to the Vuelta a España the place we can have Skjelmose and Mads [Pedersen].”
The Tour de Romandie will get underway in Payerne on Tuesday, with Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers), Juan Ayuso and Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates), Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Eddie Dunbar (Jayco-Alula) amongst these in motion.
Ciccone shall be joined within the Lidl-Trek squad by Tao Geoghegan Hart.
“Of course, the Tour and Vuelta shall be a very powerful races of my season and I need to put together for them as greatest I can. The workforce is aware of what I can contribute if I really feel good,” Ciccone stated.
“There shall be time to focus and to set with the workforce our widespread and particular objectives for the approaching months. Step by step; now, it’s necessary to dwell within the current, doing my greatest in Romandie and taking my situation to a brand new degree.”