Thibaut Pinot abandoned the Vuelta a España and ended his 2020 season due to back pain from a crash at Nice, the start of the Tour de France in August. Pinot did not race the third stage after losing time on the opening stage.

The Groupama-FDJ team leader suffered a back injury after crashing on the opening stage of the Tour de France and being rammed by another rider. After the first week, it was clear that he was out of contention for the yellow jersey, but he fought hard all the way to Paris.

The 30-year-old Frenchman had not raced since, but seemed motivated to get something out of his season in Spain. However, Groupama-FDJ posted on social media that he had left the race, and Pinot did not show up for the third stage sign-on.

"Despite the rest period, Thibaut Pinot continues to suffer from back pain after his crash in Nice on the first day of the Tour de France.

"As for next season, his full recovery is a priority: he will miss the start of stage 3 this Thursday and will not compete in 2020.

Pinot made the decision to abandon the Vuelta a España after losing 10 minutes in the first stage and another 15 minutes in the second.

Team leadership was handed over to 24-year-old former Tour de Lavenir winner David Gaudoux.

But he also endured a difficult Tour de France after a troubled summer. He is already 3:20 behind race leader Primoš Roglic (Jumbo Visma) and is likely to be in contention for a stage win.