Surgery won't disrupt Luke Plapp’s Giro d’Italia GC aims
Coverage from the Volta ao Algarve starts soon!
Good morning subscribers,
I’m currently sitting in departures at Luton airport and scanning through the start list for the Volta ao Algarve. This will be my fourth time covering the race on the ground, and I can’t remember the race roster being this deep.
Primož Roglič, Jonas Vingegaard, Geraint Thomas, João Almeida and Wout van Aert are the obvious standouts but add Sepp Kuss, Tao Geoghegan Hart, Romain Bardet, Arnaud De Lie, Neilson Powless and Biniam Girmay into the mix and you’ve got one of the best early season start lists in the men’s peloton.
The plan is to write a story each morning ahead of each stage and then follow up with a short post-stage analysis/interview before sitting down in the evening to write a third piece of content. It’s a lot, but I can’t wait to get cracking.
I’ll also share the best audio interviews and post-stage reactions from riders in my Founding Member WhatsApp group, where you can ask questions about the race and the riders. The coverage will start tomorrow.
I couldn’t have a day without content, so here’s a story on Luke Plapp, his recovery from recent surgery, and Jayco AlUla’s hope for the Australian rider’s second attempt at the Giro d’Italia.
Thanks
Daniel
Luke Plapp successfully underwent surgery on his hand last week.
The Australian crashed in training during the off-season, but the injury was manageable. He won a third national time trial title, finished second in the corresponding road race behind teammate Luke Durbridge, and claimed a credible sixth overall at the Tour Down Under.
The 24-year-old has since returned to Europe to undergo the necessary surgery.
“Luke had surgery last week in the UK. We’ve got an excellent hand specialist over there, and he’s been used by several top European pros when it comes to these types of injuries. It all went well with Luke, and now he’s going through a period of recovery and training on the home trainer. We just have to redo his schedule for the next phase of the season as he builds towards the Giro d’Italia,” said Jayco’s head of racing and performance, Matt White.