Cycling: Spaniard Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) will return to racing in the upcoming Tour de France. This became known today.
After Rodriguez had already fallen in the Amstel Gold Race, a thumb fracture forced him to retire from the Giro d'Italia. To prepare for the Vuelta, he will compete in the Tour de France on July 5 in Leeds. Dimitri Konyshev, sporting director of the Katusha team, told the Spanish newspaper AS accordingly.
“We don’t want him to take risks,” said the Russian ex-pro, “if he loses 20 minutes on the first stages, that’s good, because then he’d have room to celebrate a stage win.” He further pointed out that the team had hardly any other choice in their preparation for the Vuelta.
Following the Tour, Rodriguez will also ride the Clásica de San Sebastian and possibly the Vuelta a Burgos before pushing his bike to the start of the Vuelta on August 23 in Jerez de la Frontera.