Cycling: The bad luck remains true to the French sprint star Nacer Bouhanni. After having to give up the Tour de France in 2013 and 2015 due to falls, he now completely misses the big loop. After a fight in the hotel, he injured his hand.
Nacer Bouhanni punches himself out of the Tour de France
According to several international media reports, there was a scuffle in the hotel on Sunday night. Nacer Bouhanni is said to have been deprived of his sleep by one or three drunken hotel guests. On the night before the French road championship, he allowed himself to be provoked and even got into a fight. He injured himself so badly that his hand had to be sewn up with four stitches. However, the wound was not treated optimally, so that it became infected and Bouhanni even had to have an operation on Tuesday. As a result, Team Cofidis took him off the entry list. Nacer Bouhanni is replaced by Nicolas Edet, whose skill set corresponds to a completely different type of rider and completely upsets the team's plans. This means that Cofidis no longer has a world-class sprinter in the team and will have to rethink the tactical approach. You will probably see Cofidis more often among the breakaways in flat stages.
Leigh Howard replaces Dries Devenyns at IAM
In addition to Nacer Bouhanni, there was a second change in the official start list of the Tour de France on Wednesday. At the Swiss racing team IAM, Australian Leigh Howard will replace Belgian Dries Devenyns, who is suffering from gastroenteritis. However, this subsequent nomination will not have a lasting effect on team tactics. Team IAM will focus on the Swiss Mathias Frank in the overall standings. They also have another trump card for the mountains in Jarlinson Pantano. The rest of the riders will concentrate on helping out or occasionally get the freedom to attempt breakaways.
Tour de France Teams – The big preview of Velomotion
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Tour de France Teams #2: The sprinter teams
Tour de France teams #3: Focus on the general classification