Simon Yates Abandons 2022 Giro d'Italia

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Simon Yates Abandons 2022 Giro d'Italia

Two-time Giro d'Italia stage winner Simon Yates (Bike Exchange-Jayco) abandoned the 2022 event on a cold and rainy stage 17 from Ponte di Legno to Lavarone due to "persistent knee problems."

Yates was more than 30 minutes behind race leader Richard Kalapas (Ineos Grenadiers) and in 21st place overall.

Yates, who won the stage 2 individual time trial in Budapest, injured his knee in a crash on stage 4. His hopes of winning the stage were ended when he lost over 11 minutes on the Brockhaus climb on stage 9.

He rallied to win stage 14 in Turin, but still finished the 2018 Vuelta a EspaƱa, expressing disappointment at not being able to claim a second Grand Tour win and revealing that he considered abandoning the race just days before his stage win.

"The crash on Mount Etna in Yates and the subsequent knee problems (probably edema of the bony spongiosa of the patella) weighed heavily on the rider during all the following stages of the Giro d'Italia," Matteo Bertemacchi, team doctor for BikeExchange-Jayco, said in a press release BikeExchange-Jayco team doctor Matteo Bertemacchi said in a press release.

"Despite daily treatment and Simon's perseverance that led to the stage 2 win, the pain in the knee got worse and worse until the decision was finally made to retire.

Since his overall victory in the Vuelta, Yates has had mixed luck in the Grand Tours: in 2020, at the season-ending Giro d'Italia, he tested positive for COVID-19 and was dropped from the race.

In 2021, Yates won a stage of the Alpe di Mella, finishing third overall behind Egan Bernal and Damiano Caruso. Then in last year's Tour de France, he crashed on stage 13.

The 29-year-old Yates rode into the Giro d'Italia as one of the favorites to win, finishing second overall in Paris-Nice and winning two stages in the Vuelta Asturias.

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