The Ineos Grenadiers team has let it be known that the case of Egan Bernal, hit in the knee and forced to retire on the Tour de San Juan, does not inspire concern.
A year and six days ago, Egan Bernal suffered a serious accident while training in Colombia, and came very close to becoming paralyzed for life. It is therefore not a small pain in the knee that will prevent him from sleeping. The 26-year-old rider was unable to complete the Tour de San Juan in Argentina, having to retire on Saturday, the day before the final finish. But his case does not inspire concern. “I think we can be happy and calm about the process,” smiled Bernal on arrival. His sports director at Ineos Grenadiers Xabier Zandio then gave a few more details on the state of health of his rider. “He crashed at the same time as Quinn Simmons on the first stage. He fell, but it wasn’t that bad at the time, it was a fairly light blow to the left knee. The first day he had a little discomfort, but it didn’t affect him on the bike. On the mountain stage he felt a bit unwell, and he felt it again on Saturday’s stage, so he retired as a precaution.not. It’s never good to have a bad knee, so it’s always a small concern, but it’s not serious. He’s been assessed and it’s not very concerning, so he should be able to recover in a few days. »
Tour de France objective for Bernal
A priori, Egan Bernal should compete in the online race of the Colombian championships this Sunday, even if it is not yet 100% sure. “It’s not what we’re thinking about, we’re thinking more about the future. We are thinking about the races in Europe and the season in general. And it’s not something (the injury, editor’s note) that will change his plans for the rest of the season Zandio continues. Egan Bernal’s objective this season is indeed to compete in the Tour de France, or even the Vuelta depending on how the Grande Boucle unfolds. We will see it by then in particular on the Tour of Andalusia in mid-February then on Paris-Nice and the Tour of Catalonia in March. The opportunity to win a first victory since May 2021 and his triumph over the Giro?
