{"id":503006,"date":"2026-03-30T06:56:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T06:56:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/503006\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T06:56:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T06:56:16","slug":"mads-pedersens-latest-withdrawal-sets-off-alarm-bells-ahead-of-the-tour-of-flanders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/503006\/","title":{"rendered":"Mads Pedersen\u2019s latest withdrawal sets off alarm bells ahead of the Tour of Flanders"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Lidl-Trek<\/a> rider had already been managing physical issues after an early-season crash that left his wrist banged up. Now, this new problem further complicates his roadmap towards key dates such as the Tour of Flanders<\/a> and Paris\u2013Roubaix.The situation has not gone unnoticed by authoritative voices like former rider Per Bausager, who did not hide his concern when assessing the ex-world champion\u2019s moment: \u201cIt\u2019s crap. He doesn\u2019t have time to spare. If he had raced Provence and Paris\u2013Nice<\/a> and the full programme, skipping one race might not matter as much, but he needs to recover.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Danish expert highlights the lack of margin in the calendar and how this setback can directly affect his performance in the cobbled Monuments. He also leaves the true extent of the illness up in the air: \u201cI don\u2019t think he\u2019ll be at 100% for the Tour of Flanders. I doubt it. It all depends on something we don\u2019t know. Does he have a fever?\u201d<\/p>\n

In that sense, he insists the problem goes beyond missing a race.\u201cIf he\u2019s ill enough to pull out of the race, he can\u2019t complete a full training session either.\u201d<\/p>\n

A complicated start to the season<\/p>\n

The 2026 campaign is proving especially demanding for Pedersen, who had placed much of his ambition on the cobbled classics block. Between injury and illness, his build-up has taken several hits that force a reset of expectations at a key moment in the calendar.<\/p>\n

Even so, Bausager believes the impact will not be mental. “Psychologically, nothing affects him. I think he believes it\u2019s crap, but that doesn\u2019t dent his self-confidence or his fighting spirit.”<\/p>\n

And he adds about his competitive character. “He\u2019s very good at moving on from this kind of thing, but clearly he\u2019ll be cursing and ranting.”<\/p>\n

Positive signs despite everything<\/p>\n

Despite the adverse context, there are reasons for optimism. Pedersen himself turned in a solid ride at E3 Saxo Classic, finishing ninth. A result that gains extra weight after it emerged he raced while ill.<\/p>\n

Bausager reads it as a clear sign his baseline condition remains high. “If someone had told me 14 days ago that he\u2019d be fourth in Sanremo and ninth at E3\u2026 If he can finish ninth at E3, all the better.”<\/p>\n

And he concludes with a thought that keeps hope alive around the Dane. “That shows his fitness and engine are where they need to be.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Lidl-Trek rider had already been managing physical issues after an early-season crash that left his wrist banged…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":503007,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,175547,109119,101,110664,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-503006","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-in-flanders-fields-from-middelkerke-to-wevelgem","tag-lidl-trek","tag-sports","tag-tour-of-flanders","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/503006","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=503006"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/503006\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/503007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=503006"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=503006"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=503006"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}