Early clash with Cavendish won’t happen
Having shown superb sprinting form in the Santos Tour Down Under, André Greipel will have to wait a while longer before he and his Lotto Belisol team goes head to head with Mark Cavendish.
The duo, who have had an at-times heated relationship in the past, were due to compete in the Tour of Qatar, which starts on Sunday. The race contains many sprint stages and the ASO-organised event would have seen the two sprinters duke it out there.
However the German rider fell ill after yesterday’s Lotto Belisol team presentation in Brussels and with limited time before Greipel was due to fly to Qatar, the team has taken the difficult decision to remove him from the squad for the race.
The problem started with stomach problems and the sensation of temperature changes; according to the team, these persisted during the night.
“A medical examination this morning confirmed that Andre Greipel has fever and suffers from a viral gastro-enteritis,” stated team doctor Jan Mathieu.
It’s hoped that he will recover in time for the Tour of Oman, which begins on February 14th.
“Due to the very short timeframe in which we have to make a decision, we will take André Greipel out of our selection for the Tour of Qatar. ASO has been informed of our decision,” said the team’s sporting manager, Marc Sergeant.
“The races over there are so hard riders need to be in good health, otherwise this could endanger the season. However, at this moment we will keep André in our selection for Oman.”
The team is hoping to be able to send Jonas Van Genechten to Qatar in Greipel’s place.
Greipel won three stages in the Santos Tour Down Under, as well as the preceding Down Under Classic. He is benefiting from a strong leadout squad this year, with the signing of Greg Henderson giving the train an extra edge.