Tiesj Benoot’s coronavirus infection has had a significant impact on the Visma team. The Belgian cyclist was absent from mandatory training, resulting in the start of his season being postponed for a few days, compared to the initially planned schedule.
Illness hampered the start of the season
Benoot fell ill in early January while participating in a Training Camp in Spain with Visma-Lease a Bike. He faced a whole week without being able to cycle, and even the following week, he still had difficulties during the demanding training sessions, as reported by the Belgian newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws.
In an interview with the Flemish newspaper, Benoot commented: “It’s still a blow for me. You can’t just catch up, that’s a utopia.”
Start of the Tour of Portugal
Benoot was due to start his season on February 10th, with the Vuelta a Murcia. However, this was canceled due to the corona infection. The Clásica Jaén Paraiso Interior will also be excluded from its programming.
Instead, Benoot will start his season in Portugal at the Volta ao Algarve, which takes place from February 14th to 18th. “We didn’t want to force it,” Visma-Lease informed Bike. “These extra days of preparation are welcome. Tiesj suffered a lot”, revealed the Dutch team.
