Giulio Ciccone explains why, despite great legs, he can no longer compete with the best in the Vuelta

The 30-year-old Ciccone wanted to take all the pressure off Lidl-Trek ahead of the Vuelta, so they decided to focus on stage wins and perhaps the mountain classification. In the first few days, however, Ciccone was able to keep up with Jonas Vingegaard and João Almeida, and Lidl-Trek also thought: Isn't it a shame to just throw away a good GC?

That's why Ciccone went for it, even trying to follow an unleashed Vingegaard on day 9, and found himself in sixth place in the GC after nine stages. Everything was still to play for, but on day 10, Ciccone had to let go early on, although his team managed to put things right. A sign of things to come? Yes, indeed. On Friday on the Angliru, Ciccone lost a good two minutes.

After thirteen days of the Vuelta, Ciccone is still eighth in the GC, but his explanation for the Angliru stage on Eurosport did not bode well for what was to come. “I'm in good shape, but it's no secret that I've been in a lot of pain for the past three or four days. Unfortunately, I have another infection in my buttocks.”

Again, because Ciccone had already missed the 2024 Giro d'Italia due to surgery on a cyst in his buttocks, the area has now become infected again in the same region. “It bothers me a lot when I'm cycling. We are working with the team to solve this problem as quickly as possible, because I am in good shape. The problems started in the last few days, partly due to the rain on day 9.”

The big question is: can you get rid of an infection on your buttocks during a Grand Tour? And what are the consequences for his ambitions in Spain and at the World Championships in Rwanda? The Italian wants to go for a medal there, and why not? In the run-up to the Vuelta, he won the Clásica San Sebastián and a stage in the Tour of Burgos.