Almeida confirms: lingering illness rules him out of the Giro d'Italia

João Almeida will not start the Giro d'Italia in May, the rider himself has confirmed following a report by Diário de Notícias. The 27-year-old Portuguese has been struggling with health problems for some time. He pulled out of Paris-Nice in March, came through a difficult Volta a Catalunya, and his pursuit of top form ahead of the Giro has come up empty.

Almeida had been seen in recent months as the most credible challenger to Jonas Vingegaard at the Giro. The pair fought a memorable battle at last year's Vuelta a España: Vingegaard won for Visma | Lease a Bike, with Almeida second.

The Portuguese climber actually started 2026 well: second at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana and third on home roads at the Volta ao Algarve. That broadly mirrored his 2025 opening, although the gap to the eventual winners was larger this time.

After the Algarve, Almeida had been due to head to Paris-Nice for another duel with Vingegaard. But he fell ill and could not recover in time. Instead he raced Catalunya, where, partly because of a crash, he was unable to play any meaningful part.

Almeida and UAE rule out the Giro — could the Tour de France be next?

In Portugal, the picture has been clear: Almeida has not improved since the Volta a Catalunya, and so the Giro d'Italia is now off the table. The reports say complications have set in following the viral infection that hit him before Paris-Nice, and Almeida is now scheduled for further medical tests.

That news was confirmed on Monday morning by Almeida himself via Instagram. "Illness in recent months has affected my preparation too much, and I won't be ready in time. It's a shame, because I love the Giro."

"After discussions with the team, we've decided that I'll now take some rest and focus on new goals later this year. We haven't set those goals yet — we'll look at them calmly in the coming weeks. For now, it's time to rest and rebuild."

At the Volta a Catalunya, Almeida had already hinted at the need for tests. The decision on the Giro was reportedly taken last Thursday. Almeida had been at a training camp in the Sierra Nevada, but headed home to Andorra before the weekend. Tests are now lined up in Portugal.

UAE Team Emirates-XRG have, of course, already run several rounds of testing in recent weeks, but those have apparently not pinpointed the cause. There are said to be some concerns within UAE, who must now reshape their Giro squad.

The Tour de France could become an option in place of the Giro — though Almeida would have to ride there in service of Tadej Pogačar. Isaac del Toro is also being lined up for the Tour. To make that switch work, Almeida will need to find significant form in the coming weeks.

Beyond Almeida, Adam Yates, Marc Soler, Jay Vine and Jan Christen were already on UAE's provisional Giro list. Leadership at the race therefore looks unlikely to be a problem. Jhonatan Narváez, António Morgado and Igor Arrieta were also expected to ride.