Any bike race is never just about the winners, and for the Tour de France that's particularly pertinent. Each year every top rider taking part tries to be in their very best condition for cycling’s high point of the stage racing season. But abandons, from illness or injury or poor condition, inevitably form part of each day’s narrative.
This year, in just two days at the 2023 Tour, we’ve already seen two of the key names quit the race. Enric Mas (Movistar) and Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyFirst), both through crashes and injuries, have had to head home early. While they will likely now rethink the rest of the season, their squads have to regroup and establish new objectives for the remainder of the race.
