Pierre Rolland’s participation doubtful for Paris-Nice
Pierre Rolland injured his knee during last week’s Tour de Haut Var and his inclusion at the Paris-Nice is now doubtful.
The cyclist grabbed his first victory of the 2012 season at the Etoile de Besseges 2012 after he dominated the third stage of the race.
He was looking forward to riding in the French race but his participation is now under question.
L’Equipe reported him as saying, “I had never had problems with my knees before, but so be it, that doesn’t mean much”.
While commenting on his current condition, Rolland noted, “I felt a niggle on the rollers, but it was nothing compared to the pain I felt from the vibrations on the road”.
“Paris-Nice is five hours a day, and after a full hour of training, the pain came back It worries me a little because after ten days, even with rest and physiotherapy sessions, it hasn’t gone away,” he concluded.
Pierre also briefed that Paris-Nice is undoubtedly one of the toughest races, both, mentally and physically.
The cyclist underwent a detailed scan,which revealed a slight cartilage on his right patella. Rolland stayed off his bike for one whole week and tried his knee at the Le Samyn race on Wednesday.
He struggled during the event and had no other option but to withdraw from the race. The French admitted the fact that his current form is not good enough for the exhaustingly long stages of Paris-Nice.
Pierre also holds three Tour de France appearances and finished tenth overall last year. He also bagged the young rider’s jersey during the French race and is targeting the 2012 edition of the race.
The 70th version of “the race to the sun” will kick off on Sunday, March 4th and the cyclists will go through eight different stages before the overall winner will be decided on 11th March, 2012.
Belgian rider Alphonse Schepers succeeded at the first edition of the race, back in 1933, while Tony Martin secured the most recent version of the event.
Sean Kelly of Ireland holds the honour of winning the race on eight different occasions. He dominated the race for seven consecutive years, 1981-1988.
Tags: