Cancellara worlds dream ‘unrealistic’
Fabian Cancellara's dream of winning a road race worlds title may be fading as injury and illness have plagued his 2015 season.
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VEJER DE LA FRONTERA, Spain (VN) — Fabian Cancellara, after abandoning the Vuelta a España in stage 3 with a stomach flu, may pull the plug on his season and his dream of winning the world championship road race. His Trek Factory Racing team said that it is “unrealistic” to go to the race to win the rainbow jersey.
After abandoning Tuesday, Cancellara traveled back home to Bern, Switzerland to undergo tests and plan the rest of the year. The remainder of 2015 may include other warm-up races before the worlds in Richmond, Virginia, or may include an extended break before 2016, which should be the 34-year-old’s last as a professional.
“He fought hard and trained hard to come here, to reach a good level to prepare for the worlds. He keeps dreaming of the worlds,” team sport director, Dirk Demol told VeloNews.
“The dream stayed alive before he came here, but now we have to be realistic. When you want to have a chance in the worlds, you have to go 100 percent, but now, to reach that level it’s going to be so difficult.”
Cancellara won time trial worlds a record four times, but he dreams of winning the road race title. He tried several times, but has only reached fourth place so far.
After pulling out of the classics and the Tour de France, while wearing the yellow jersey, due to two different crashes that resulted in two similar injuries, he could call off his worlds plans. After the Tour, he had one month rest before returning to racing in the Vuelta on Saturday. The three-week Spanish grand tour was meant to polish off his form for worlds.
Demol paused for two seconds when asked how realistic it would be for Cancellara to build up his form in time to have a chance at winning the rainbow jersey. “Never say never, but it’s almost a mission impossible,” he said. “He missed so many races this year.
“It’s important for us, the sponsor, that he’s there in Richmond, but a rider like him … If you are not 100 percent, what do you do there?
“I felt so bad for him off the back and suffering yesterday; that’s not Fabian. It’s too early to say, but it’s almost unrealistic that we can dream of being in an OK condition to go there.”
Cancellara could immediately fly to Canada and race the Tour of Alberta, the Canadian one-day races, and other one-day races to prepare for the worlds. Demol explained that “it’s too early to decide” how the final chapter of 2015 season will end.