Julian Dean Ruled Out of Commonwealth Games
Veteran rider Julian Dean of New Zealand has announced his withdrawal from this year's Commonwealth Games, set to be held in Delhi, India in October.
The decision to withdraw from the Games came after discussions with his Team Garmin-Transitions trainer.
"I know from experience that it is not realistic to carry on the form for much more than two weeks after a Grand Tour such as the Tour of Spain, particularly at the end of a very long season,” Dean said upon making the announcement.
Three Grand Tours, Again
For the second consecutive season, the 35-year-old will be riding in all three Grand Tours this year. Having already ridden the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France in May and July, Dean will also feature in the Tour of Spain, which gets underway on August 28th.
After discussions with his team, Dean decided that his fitness could not be guaranteed with such an intense racing schedule, and that it would be better to let one of the team's younger, fully-fit riders compete in Delhi.
“Rather than risk not being at my best for Delhi, it's better that I withdraw now and allow a promising young rider the opportunity to gain the experience,” Dean said of the decision.
The New Zealander said he would be riding in the UCI World Road Championships in Australia, however. The championships begin in September, two weeks after the conclusion of the Tour of Spain.
Dean's 2010 Tour
During this year's Tour de France, Dean came closer than ever to grabbing a stage win, finishing second in Stage 4 and 18, while he came third in Stage 20.
Towards the end of Stage 11, Dean was preparing to launch a sprint attack on Team HTC-Columbia's Mark Cavendish when Australian Mark Renshaw, riding in support of Cavendish, headbutted Dean out of the way.
After the stage, Renshaw was judged to have obstructed Dean and was disqualified from the race.
Dean, National Road Race Champion of New Zealand in 2007 and 2008, won last year's team time trial in the Giro d'Italia.
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