Cycling news - World Champion Julian Alaphilippe to miss Tokyo Olympic Games for personal reasons
ByReuters
Published 14/05/2021 at 13:56 GMT
French World Champion Julian Alaphilippe will not compete for Olympic gold in Tokyo this summer. The Deceuninck-Quick Step rider is expecting a child in June with his partner and former French national champion Marion Rousse, and has decided not to travel to Japan later this year for family reasons. The Olympics come just a week after the conclusion of the Tour de France in July.
Julian Alaphilippe vince sul traguardo di Mur de Huy - Freccia Vallone 2021 - Getty Images
Image credit: Getty Images
World road race champion Julian Alaphilippe will skip the Olympic road race for personal reasons, the Frenchman announced on Friday.
Alaphilippe became the first Frenchman in over two decades to win the world championships when he attacked on the final climb in Italy to take the rainbow jersey last autumn.
But the 28-year-old – who has won five individual stages at the Tour de France and a host of one-day races, including the Milan – San-Remo monument, will not be among the contenders for the Olympic road race in Japan later this year.
"After giving it a lot of thought, I have decided, after agreeing with the national coach and my Deceuninck-Quick Step team, not to make myself available for selection for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics," Alaphilippe wrote on Instagram.
"It is a personal, well-considered decision," added the Deceuninck rider, who is expecting a child next month with former French national champion and current cycling broadcaster Marion Rousse.
Alaphilippe, who was fourth in the Olympic road race in 2016, will instead focus his efforts for the summer on the Tour de France, which begins on June 26 in Brest.
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article
Advertisement
Advertisement