Paris (AFP) - Italian cyclist Giulio Ciccone of the Trek-Segafredo team has withdrawn from next week's Giro d'Italia after a lingering bout of Covid-19.
Winner of three stages on the Giro in previous years Ciccone briefly wore the Tour de France yellow jersey after a climb to La Planche des Belles Filles.
The climb specialist was also the Giro's top climber in 2019 and recently beat Primoz Roglic and Remco Evenepoel at a summit finish in Catalonia.
The 28-year-old had been due to lead Trek on the May 6-28 bike race around Italy alongside the 2019 world champion, Denmark's Mads Pedersen.
Ciccone said missing out was like "swallowing a bitter pill" because he was in flying form until the Covid hit him.
"I have to listen to my body.I have to recover in the best way possible because the season is long and the risk of compromising it would be too high."
Trek last week fired young Italian rider Antonio Tiberi after an incident where he shot dead a cat from his bedroom window as it walked along a neighbour's wall.
