VN news ticker: Mathieu van der Poel abandons Tour de Suisse, Julian Alaphilippe given 20-second penalty for illegal feed

Mathieu van der Poel abandons Tour de Suisse

Mathieu van der Poel has left the Tour de Suisse ahead of stage 6 on Friday due to a mild cold.

The Dutchman romped to two stage wins and spent a day in yellow at the eight-day Swiss race, showing that he hadn’t lost anything during a stint away from his road bike.

Van der Poel arrived at the Tour de Suisse after a short period of racing his mountain bike and also an altitude training camp at La Plagne. He will make his Tour de France debut and then ride mountain bike event at the Tokyo Olympics this summer.

“After the rainfall from the past days, Mathieu van der Poel suffers from a mild cold,” the team wrote on social media. “While he was really looking forward to the next stages, the team’s medical staff decided to pull him out of the Tour de Suisse so as not to compromise his health in light of his next goals.”

The Tour de Suisse continues through the high mountains Friday with two first category ascents, one of which passes surpasses 2,000 meters altitude.

🇨🇭 #TourdeSuisse

After the rainfall from the past days, @mathieuvdpoel suffers from a mild cold. While he was really looking forward to the next stages, the team's medical staff decided to pull him out of the @tds so as not to compromise his health in light of his next goals. pic.twitter.com/mnn57zKWqO

— Alpecin-Deceuninck Cycling Team (@AlpecinDCK) June 11, 2021

Caleb Ewan wins in Belgium, Arnaud Démare fastest in France

Tour de France-sprinters bounded to victories across Europe on Friday.

Caleb Ewan (Lotto-Soudal) won a bunch sprint in stage 3 at the Baloise Belgium Tour. It’s the first win for the Aussie sprinter since he pulled out of the Giro d’Italia last month. Remco Evenepoel (Deceuninck-Quick-Step) retained the overall lead.

In France, Arnaud Démare (Groupama-FDJ) won at La Route d’Occitanie. Andrea Vendrame (Ag2r) retains the overall lead,

Uno-X Pro Cycling Team applies for UCI WorldTour license

The Uno-X Pro Cycling Team has applied for a UCI WorldTour license. The UCI ProTeam boasts a roster that is predominantly filled with Norweigan and Danish athletes, and had been racing under various names since the 2010-11 season.

Uno-X Sykkel AS owns and operates the Uno-X Pro Cycling Team, professional women’s and men’s cycling teams beginning in 2022. Uno-X Sykkel will apply to the UCI for WorldTour status for the women’s team for 2022 and for a men’s UCI WorldTour license in 2023.

During the 2021 season so far, the squad has landed on the podium with strong performances to support Rasmus Tiller, 1st at Dwars door het Hageland, and 2nd at Le Samyn.

The squad will be known as Uno-X E-Mobility AS going forward. The team’s title sponsor manages EV fast-charging infrastructure and the Uno-X Nordic Swan Ecolabelled car wash locations, in Norway and Denmark.

Julian Alaphilippe given 20-second penalty for illegal feed

Julian Alaphilippe had 20 seconds added to his overall time at the Tour de Suisse as punishment for taking a bottle from his car inside the final nine kilometers of Thursday’s Tour de Suisse stage.

UCI rules prevent riders from taking a drink, or any food and gels, during the last 20 kilometers of a race, unless otherwise stated by the race jury. That 20 kilometers can be reduced during days where it is particularly hot, and riders must drink more regularly.

“I needed to drink, and my director said I could take a last bottle, but at the moment I was taking it he hesitated a bit. He had just received the order from the commissaire that apparently it was no longer authorized,” Alaphilippe explained to reporters after the finish.

“I’d just thrown my bidon, I needed to drink, so I took it. Apparently, I’ve been penalized but that doesn’t change anything at all.”

Alaphilippe’s punishment sees him drop down from third to fourth overall and he now has a 53-second gap to race leader Richard Carapaz.

Alaphilippe pegou abastecimento irregular? #Tds #tds2021 #ciclismonaespn pic.twitter.com/CLVTz6EF2B

— País do Ciclismo (@DoCiclismo) June 10, 2021