Tim Declercq faces a month-long battle to regain full fitness after taking more than two weeks off the bike after being diagnosed with pericarditis.

According to Het Laatste Nieuws (opens in new tab) and other Flemish media, the Belgian QuickStep-AlphaVinyl rider will only be able to return to the bike this Friday and will miss this spring's Cobbled Classic campaign He said he would have to However, there is a slight chance that he could make it to Paris-Roubaix.

"I don't have to start from scratch, but I'm sure I'll feel that way when I get back in the saddle for the first time on Friday," Declercq said of his first training day since being diagnosed with pericarditis (inflammation of the inner walls of the heart) last month.

"I'll be back to a decent level soon, maybe 70 to 80 percent. But it's a somewhat depressing thought that even a well-trained body loses condition faster than it makes it. It takes time.

"I've been off the bike for 17 days, almost as long as my winter break. I think it will take me at least four weeks to get back to the high level of the peloton. It's a shame I'm going to miss the Classic, but it is what it is. I look forward to the day when I can resume training."

De Clercq last raced on the opening stage of the Volta ao Algarve, where he suffered chest pains and breathing difficulties in the evening. He has not been on a bike since and faces a month-long battle to get back to 100% condition, but said his main goal for 2022 is to represent the team in the Tour de France.

"Depending on how my condition progresses, my chances of competing in Paris-Roubaix may be very slim. But even then it would be a "mini-peak" and I doubt if I could remain in the selection process.

"I have my sights set on the second half of the season. My big goal right now is to compete in the Tour de France."

De Clercq, who turns 33 this month, says he initially feared his diagnosis until he learned more about the disease, which is relatively mild with treatment.

He also said his eyes were opened to the after-effects of COVID-19, which he contracted after a tour of Saudi Arabia in early February and which likely contributed to his pericarditis, a condition believed to be caused by a viral infection.

"At first it was very scary. I thought, 'Oh my goodness, my heart. Then I dug a little deeper and realized it wasn't such a bad disease after all. Pericarditis is not a "real" heart disease. There was no fluid buildup or scar tissue, the EKG was completely normal, and the MRI ruled out myocarditis. There is no need to worry about the long-term effects, but even so, one should not take one's heart for granted.

"The positive test (for COVID-19) was only slightly symptomatic, no fever, etc. So I thought, 'It won't do any harm, there's no great danger. But it turns out that we have to be more vigilant than with the common cold because the virus likes to 'stick around.'"

"I have heard that I am not the only one in the peloton, and that there are several players who have had similar experiences. In my opinion, it's a shame they don't come out and break the "taboo."