Swiss time trial specialist Fabian Cancellara opted not to start in today’s twelfth stage of the Giro d’Italia.
The 60.6km stage from Sestri Levante to Riomaggiore was too much for the reigning Olympic time trial champion, deciding his return to form would be better served with a couple of days rest followed by some specialized training.
Cancellara’s year started off with a great start, winning the prologue in the Tour of California in February. But immediately after putting on the leader’s jersey he was out of the race with illness. Once he had recovered from sickness, his luck got worse with an injury from a training accident keeping him out of contention for the Spring Classics.
Not only Cancellara, but his Saxo Bank team as a whole had a difficult start to the year. After being blanked in the first of the Spring Classics, veteran Jen Voigt gave the team a much needed morale boost dominating the Criterium International, soon followed up by Andy Schleck’s amazing performances in Fleche Wallone and Liege-Bastogne-Liege – making up in part for the bad luck of his injured older brother, Frank.