Pneumonia forces Mathieu van der Poel to withdraw from Tour de France
Mathieu van der Poel has been forced to withdraw from the Tour de France after being diagnosed with pneumonia. The Dutch rider will not be taking to the start line for Tuesday’s 16th stage of the Tour, which finishes on Mont Ventoux, his team, Alpecin-Deceuninck, has confirmed.
The 30-year-old won the second stage of this year's Tour to Boulogne-sur-Mer, wearing the yellow jersey for four days as overall leader.
“Over the past few days, Mathieu showed symptoms of a common cold,” the team said. “His condition worsened yesterday afternoon and he had a fever by evening. He was taken to the Centre Hospitalier de Narbonne for further tests.”
Medical examinations revealed that he had developed pneumonia. Following consultation with the team’s medical staff, it was decided that he would not continue the race. “His health is the absolute priority now," his team said. "Rest and recovery are essential.”
Van der Poel will need at least a week's rest. Further medical checks will follow to determine the next steps in his recovery.
This is the third time in five Tour appearances that Van der Poel has been forced to withdraw. He withdrew during his 2021 debut, despite winning the stage to Mûr-de-Bretagne, and again in 2022. However, he completed the full race in 2023 and 2024.
© PHOTO AFP
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