Tim Merlier struggles with his knee: no Flemish opening weekend for him
Tim Merlier will not participate in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne. The Belgian sprinter is once again suffering from knee issues. This was announced by Jorgen Foré, team manager at Soudal Quick-Step, in an interview with Het Laatste Nieuws.
Merlier has already postponed his season start multiple times. After missing his debut at the AlUla Tour, the UAE Tour was also removed from his schedule. Now, the Flemish Opening Weekend also comes too soon. “The opening weekend is unattainable for Tim,” said Foré.
“Tim hasn’t been able to train without pain for even two weeks. At the earliest, he might be able to race mid or late March, but we don’t want to fixate on a specific date or race. For now, we’re not making plans with Tim.”
In December, Merlier first had irritation in his left knee, then in his right. After a rest period, the problem seemed to disappear during the January training camp, but towards the end of the camp he experienced issues again in his right knee. “We intervened immediately, treated the knee again and prescribed ten days of rest. “Next Monday, we will assess whether the problem has passed,” said Foré.
Rex, Vervaeke and Magnier
Soudal Quick-Step has more riders sidelined. Laurenz Rex suffered a heavy crash last week at the AlUla Tour. He broke three vertebral protrusions. Louis Vervaeke and Paul Magnier had to skip the Tour of Valencia. Vervaeke is taking a week off after a fall at the GP Castellón where he injured his knee, while Magnier is dealing with a cold. The latter is “quietly training at home.”
