French rider hopes to recover during today’s rest day
Garmin-Cervélo rider Christophe Le Mevel sounded optimistic in a video interview carried out before the start of yesterday’s stage of the Giro d’Italia, saying that he was going to make a big push for the Maglia Rosa, but the Frenchman appeared a very different rider by the end of the stage to Mount Etna.
Coughing strongly and looking drained, he said that he had become ill during the stage.
“It was a very bad day for me today because I am very sick,” he said at the finish. “I hope that the rest day I can get better, because today is not a very good day for me.”
Le Mevel had started the stage fourth overall, just five seconds back, and was clear on what he needed to do. “It is an important day for me because Enta is a big stage in this Giro…it is the first stage with a lot of mountains,” he said at the sign-in. “I think my form is good…my sensations are good, anyway, so I would like to stay in front.”
Like the other contenders, he was unable to stay with Alberto Contador on the final climb. He finished 11th, one minute and seven seconds behind the Spaniard. However with Marco Pinotti (HTC Highroad) conceding four minutes 47 seconds, Le Mevel actually improved in the general classification to third overall. He was most likely unaware of that when he spoke after the finish.
As he mentioned, he now has the race’s first rest day to try to get over his problem. The next big mountain stage is Friday, and so Le Mevel has a bit of time to regain his strength and push for what he will hope will be a strong final nine days in this Giro.
The Frenchman won a stage in the 2005 edition of the Italian Grand Tour, and was tenth overall in the 2009 Tour de France.
