Richard Carapaz focused on Tour de France after Tour of Switzerland withdrawal
By Alex Livie
Updated 25/06/2024 at 12:10 GMT+1
Richard Carapaz will look to recover fitness in the next couple of weeks in time for the Tour de France after withdrawing from the Tour of Switzerland having suffered facial injuries in a crash on Stage 4. After not getting to the start line on Stage 5, the Ecuadorian said his goal was to lead his EF Education-EasyPost at the Tour de France which starts in Andorra on June 29.
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Richard Carapaz has his sights trained on the Tour de France after withdrawing from the Tour of Switzerland due to injury.
Carapaz, the 2020 Olympic Road Race champion, did not take to the start line on Stage 5 of the Tour of Switzerland after picking up facial injuries in a crash the previous day.
The Ecuadorian's EF Education-EasyPost team said the withdrawal - and that of team-mate Alberto Bettiol - was precautionary, with bigger tasks ahead.
“Richard Carapaz and Alberto Bettiol will not start Stage 5 of the Tour of Switzerland due to injuries sustained in a crash on Stage 4,” the team said. “Alberto suffered from road rash and bruising and Richard suffered a face injury, which required sutures.
"Both riders will prioritise rest and recovery.”
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Carapaz issued a statement of his own, saying his plan of racing at the Tour de France was unchanged.
“It doesn't make much sense to continue racing, the injuries and inflammation make it difficult for me to eat well,” Carapaz said. “Now I only think about recovering.
“The goal remains the Tour de France and we will continue working towards it.
"I will probably have to spend two or three days without touching the bike, but then I hope to be able to train normally to arrive in Florence in the best possible condition.”
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Carapaz is looking to find the form that saw him secure the Giro d'Italia in 2019 and Olympic gold in Tokyo in 2021.
He has a little over two weeks to fine tune his plans before the Tour gets underway in Florence on June 29.
discovery+ is the streaming home of the Tour de France this summer, with live coverage running June 29 to July 21.
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