Kobe Goossens started this season like a rocket, but then his engine stalled a bit. He developed an infection at the Tour de Romandie and those after-effects keep him out of the Grand Départ on July 1 in Bilbao.
“I took a two-week break after Romandy, so I had to miss altitude training with the team,” Goossens explains.
“Then I started my preparation for the Tour de France, but unfortunately we soon made sure that my recovery was not good, and therefore I could not complete good training sessions.”
“With this broken setup, my goals of winning a stage and helping Louis Meintjes as best as possible became unrealistic scenarios.”
Goossens is now building in a new break and aiming for the Vuelta.
Ron Hergodets is sick in the same bed. He prepared himself with altitude training and was immediately on time in the Dauphiné (he had just missed the first stage), but the withdrawal on the penultimate day “caused doubts”.
“Due to a reduced recovery capacity, I have not been able to complete the necessary training since that day to prepare myself for the start of my Grand Tour.”
“Knowing that my replacements are 100 percent ready, I decided with Aike Visbeek and my coach Frederik Fuechlin to focus on the Belgian Championships, as was originally planned.”
“It is a huge disappointment for our team that preparations for the Tour de France have been disrupted by the health problems of both Kobe Goossens and Rune Herregodts,” explains Performance Director Aike Visbeek.
“Kobe Goossens was one of the important regular pawns who managed the ambition of Intermarché-Circus-Wanty by aiming for a stage victory and helping Louis Meintjes reach the top ten in the final classification.”
“So it’s a big setback for us that we also have to miss this team player on the Tour after the Critérium du Dauphiné.”
Rune Herregodts missed the Giro and now the Tour too. “After our group training at altitude, he cemented his selection with impressive results at the Tour of Norway and the Critérium du Dauphiné.”
“Unfortunately, his last direct participation in the Tour was hampered by health problems and the forced retirement of the Dauphiné.”
“After the Belgian championship, we will focus on a new preparation for the Spanish championship.”
