Philippe Gilbert takes a break and skips Tour of Flanders: I am still human
Mar 30 2021 05:48 am CET
Photo of Philippe Gilbert (c)Lotto Soudal
Lotto-Soudal's Philippe Gilbert has decided to take a rest, both physically and mentally, and won't be at the start line of the Tour of Flanders.
The Belgian rider -who took the victory of the Ronde van Vlaanderen in 2017- has decided to skip it in order to take a physical and mental break. "We decided with the team that I would take a period of rest now because it is not going well at all", explained Gilbert. "It's been a few weeks now that things haven't been going well. We took the time to analyse everything there was to discuss and we came to the conclusion that it is a lack of mental and physical freshness. I think it is due to all the work I did after my crash at the Tour de France last year.
"I am still human. I put in a lot of work, without any decent rest really, because during the weeks off the bike, I was working hard with the physiotherapist or other specialists. At the time, I've had a bad diagnosis of the knee. We didn't really realise how serious that second crash was. In the end, it was much more serious than we initially thought. Maybe I should have stopped my 2020 season at that point."
Although the rider expects to be back in competition for the Ardennes Classics, but that's not certain. "My idea is to have 4-5 days off the bike and then slowly resume training," Gilbert said. "The Ardennes Classics remain an option, but it's still too early to talk about this. First, I want to feel 100%, both physically and mentally, in order to play a role in the finales. After all, that's why I practice sport."
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