Tom Pidcock has abandoned the Tour de France ahead of stage 14 after showing symptoms of Covid, Ineos Grenadiers announced on Saturday.
The Briton was competing in his third successive Tour and was hunting for stage wins, while his teammates Carlos Rodríguez and Egan Bernal ride for the general classification.
Pidcock, 24, finished second on stage nine of the race.
Before the race entered the Pyrenees, his team confirmed that he would be leaving the race. "A disappointed Tom Pidcock will not line up for stage 14 of the Tour de France today," a statement from Ineos read. "Tom is experiencing symptoms of Covid-19 and under advice from our medical team will now return home to recover."
Speaking pre-stage on Saturday, Ineos DS Zak Dempster said that the Briton was "gutted".
"He's been a bit under the weather for the last few days," he said. "It's a shame. The rider's health comes first.
"It's not just any bike race. He was second on a stage, but he still had high hopes of winning stages and being a key player. Heading home today is a real shame and you've got to feel for the guy.
"Tom's a winner," Dempster continued. "This year, with an eye to having Carlos here, Tom was a bit of a joker to go up and win stages. We still have plenty of cards to play now. I don't think it changes our strategy a whole heap."
Pidcock's big summer aim is retaining his mountain bike title at the Olympic Games, and he was hoping to ride himself into race-winning form at the Tour.
In 2022, his first participation in the Tour, he won on Alpe d'Huez, and twice came close to winning in 2023.
At the start of this year's race in Florence, Pidcock said that it was "better" that Ineos' head of racing, Steve Cummings, was not at the race as lead DS.
Other than Pidcock almost winning the gravel stage in Troyes on the second weekend – he was out-sprinted for the win by TotalEnergies' Anthony Turgis – the team have struggled to make an impact so far, although Rodríguez does sit fifth on GC ahead of the Pyrenees and Alps.
Pidcock, largely an unknown quantity in riding for the general classification, has expressed his desire to target yellow in the future. That could mean sacrificing his multi-discipline approach to the sport, and temporarily reducing the amount of cyclo-cross and mountain bike races he competes in.
The current mountain bike world champion and a former holder of the rainbow bands in cyclo-cross, he has won five races on the road since turning professional in 2021.
