Giro d’Italia leader Remco Evenepoel is out of the race on Sunday evening following a positive COVID-19 test, his Soudal-QuickStep team has announced.
Evenepoel had shot to victory in the stage 9 time trial in the afternoon, edging out Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) by under a second on the 35km test in Cesena.
However, hours later, after the world champion had donned the maglia rosa having retaken the race lead, news filtered through that he had been forced to leave the race.
“I am really sorry to be leaving the race,” Evenepoel said in a statement released by his team. “As part of the team’s protocol, I took a routine test, which unfortunately was positive.
“My experience here has been really special and I was looking forward to competing over the next two weeks. I can’t thank enough the staff and the riders who sacrificed so much in preparation for the Giro. I will be cheering them on over the next two weeks.”
More to come…
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