Deignan drops out of the Vuelta
Philip Deignan had a difficult time during the final climb of today’s stage 11 of the Vuelta a Espana, dropping out of the race due to fatigue. The 27-year-old Irish cyclist, riding for the Cervelo TestTeam, won a stage and finished in the top-10 of the 2009 Vuelta a Espana, but has been suffering from a difficult season which began with an injury during the pre-season training. He suffered a viral illness shortly before the race began, and though he had a few good days, he was well below his 2009 form.
“Philip was pretty tired. He’s had a hard season with all his illness and today was too much for him, he just did his best,” said Philippe Maudite, the Cervelo team director. “Philip was one of the strongest of the team the other day on the Catí climb, so there is nothing to complain about.” The Cervelo TestTeam will be disbanding at the end of the 2010 season, and while many of the riders have moved to Garmin-Transitions, that team has already filled its maximum allotted quote and Deignan hasn’t been offered a contract. The rider was put in a bad position by the team’s dissolution, since the contract extension he had signed last fall was for two more seasons, and the rider was not prepared to be in search of a new team before 2012.
The Vuelta a Espana has already seen the loss of some of its major contenders, including the entire Team Sky after one of their staff members died as a result of a bacterial infection. More recently, Tour de France runner-up Andy Schleck and his Saxo Bank teammate, Stuart O’Grady, were kicked out of the race by their team manager, Bjarne Riis, after allegedly staying out drunk until five in the morning before a stage. “Bjarne has taken us out to plenty of dinners. He is quite a fine wine connoisseur himself. He normally brings some nice wines, so I really don’t know,” said Schleck’s brother Frank. He was critical of Riis’ decision, and continues to compete in the Vuelta. He said, “I think it has a lot more to do with than just having a couple of beers.”
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