Tom Pidcock’s end-of-season ambitions have been hit by a crash on the Tour of Britain and a concussion prognosis, with the Ineos Grenadiers rider admitting that ‘non-performance’ points within the staff are nonetheless distracting him from racing.
Pidcock received a second consecutive gold medal within the mountain bike occasion on the Paris Olympics however then struggled within the street race every week later. He admitted that he was “mentally a bit frazzled” resulting from experiences and hypothesis about his future at Ineos Grenadiers.
He was reportedly linked to a transfer away from the staff in the course of the summer time, with solutions that he doesn’t get together with Director of Racing Steve Cummings, who was surprisingly left at dwelling or the Tour de France. It seems Pidcock will now keep at Ineos however the switch speak and issues contained in the staff have been a distraction.
Pidcock was in an early break on the ultimate stage of the Tour of Britain however then crashed laborious. Various riders from the Tour of Britain had been resulting from journey to Canada through Paris on Tuesday however Pidcock will now miss the 2 races and spend time at dwelling to get well from concussion.
“Following the crash in stage six of the Tour of Britain, we will verify that Tom Pidcock has sustained a concussion. He’ll return dwelling for restoration and stay below the supervision of our medical staff while he follows our concussion ‘return to coaching’ protocol,” Ineos stated in a social media publish.
“Sadly this may imply he’s unable to race within the upcoming Canadian races. We want Tom a speedy restoration and hope he might be again to racing quickly.”
The Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec might be held on Friday, September 13, with the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal on Sunday, September 15.
Tadej Pogačar, Michael Matthews, Julian Alaphilippe and quite a few different riders are utilizing the 2 World Tour races as an vital build-up to the UCI street World Championships in Zurich, Switzerland on September 29.
Pidcock was anticipated to lead Nice Britain in Zurich, alongside Tour of Britain winner Stevie Williams.
Pidcock has loved a rollercoaster 2024 season, successful the Amstel Gold Race and Olympic gold but additionally struggling on the Tour de France earlier than catching COVID-19. His many skills make it tough for Pidcock to decide on between mountain biking, the cobbled classics and Grand Tour racing. He has hinted he’ll deal with street racing within the season to return.
“Like in so many seasons, there are optimistic and adverse facets. It’s simply so rattling laborious to win. There are solely a small variety of riders who win the vast majority of the races and I need to be certainly one of them. That’s not the case now and that has to alter,” Pidcock instructed Het Laatste Nieuws on the Tour of Britain.
When requested if he endured a scarcity of freedom at Ineos, Pidcock reportedly stated: “It is true that there are a selection of issues inside the staff that I’ve to cope with for the time being. And to be sincere, they do not assist me to carry out optimally.
“I’ve to consider much more than simply performance-related issues for the time being. And that signifies that the deal with the issues which are actually vital, specifically racing, shouldn’t be ultimate.”
Requested if it was a matter of the staff’s construction, Pidcock stated: “I feel I might higher not say something extra about this.”
Requested if there’s a probability he’ll change groups, he stated: “I’ve a contract till the tip of 2027. I can not say extra.”
