Remco Evenpoel's (Deceuninck-Quick Step) return to racing has been put on hold as the young Belgian still has "minor issues" after a horrific fall on Il Lombardia. The crash, which occurred last August, left Evenpoel with a fractured pelvis and several other injuries. He returned to the bike last October, but had to delay his recovery and has not confirmed his first race for the 2021 season.

"I have a little surprise for you. There have been a couple of small difficulties during the rehabilitation process. To be honest, we still don't know when we will be able to restart. We had some small problems and I didn't feel good in the car, so I don't know when and where I will be able to restart.

"I'm not a doctor so I don't know the specific words, but I just have a little pain in the fractured area so it's still hard to sit in the saddle for a few hours, it needs to heal before I can ride the bike 100%."

Evenepoel had targeted last year's Giro d'Italia and the Olympics, but was forced to reorganize his season when the former was postponed until later in the year and the latter until 2021. He won the Vuelta a San Juan, the Volta ao Algarve, the Vuelta a Burgos, and the Tour de Pollogne. At this stage, however, he is still looking ahead to May and the Giro, whose route for 2021 has not yet been announced.

"I don't know what the doctors are saying about my return. My body will give me an answer, we will see. I've already been off the bike for a few weeks. I can still do cardio like walking and swimming. I don't ride with everyone, so it's an individual program for now. But all is well. From day one, I said I was going to be able to ride the bike 100% in February, so I'm not behind schedule. Maybe a little bit earlier than planned. Of course, I will make it to the Giro. I can't say yet when or where I will restart or if I will be able to race, but my goal is to eventually make the Giro."

However, the news is a blow considering that in October, when Evenpoel resumed training on the road, he told Belgian media that his recovery was ahead of schedule.

"Wasn't my recovery much faster than I dreamed? Certainly," Evenpoel said at the time on Belgian television station VTM.

"At first there was talk that I could only go to the first training session in mid-November. But I rested well, took good care of myself, and did everything they told me to do. As a result, everything accelerated