Tim Wellens (Lotto-Soudal) will miss the Tour de France due to injuries sustained in a training crash on Friday. The Belgian did not break any bones, but suffered injuries to his shoulder, elbow, and knee in a severe crash during a motor pace.

Lotto Soudal will replace Wellens with Frederic Frisson. Sprinters Caleb Yuan, Philippe Gilbert, Thomas Degent, and John Degenkolb will lead the team. The modified Tour will start in Nice on Saturday.

"I can't express how disappointed I am. It's one of the worst crashes I've ever had on a bike," Wellens said Monday.

"I was training behind the scooter when both the bike and I were startled by a bump in the road. The scooter managed to avoid a collision. I could not avoid it. I was so surprised that I did not have time to brake. The speed was so fast that the scratches on the road surface were very deep. I have injuries on most of my body, so my temperature is high and I don't sleep well. This will never heal within a week. And it is really impossible to recover more than this in the Tour de France. In that race, every stage is like a world championship."

Wellens has competed in the Tour three times before, winning two combativeness awards for his aggressive riding in last year's race and leading the mountains for two weeks before losing the polka-dot jersey to Romain Bardet in the Alps.

"I feel really bad. I was ready for the Tour. My goal was to win a stage. The first stage in particular suited me. It was a tough stage in an area I knew well," Wellens said. He recontested a number of stages to Nice, Sisteron, and Orciere-Merrette.

In Wellens' absence, Frederic Frisson made his Tour debut. The 28-year-old showed his form last week by finishing third in the Belgian time trial championships behind Wout Van Aert and Victor Kampenaerts.

Lotto Soudal took four stage wins at last year's Tour, thanks to a sprint hat trick by Ewan and a stunning solo victory in Saint-Etienne by De Gendt.

The duo, along with newcomers Gilbert and Degenkolb, will lead the team in its quest for more stage wins in 2020. They will be joined by Steph Klass, Jasper de Baist, and Roger Kluge.