Road to Tokyo 2020: World champion cyclist Peter Sagan to miss Olympics after surgery
Covid-19 scare to keep Canada’s tennis star Bianca Andreescu away
Bratislava, Slovakia: Three-time world champion Peter Sagan will miss the Tokyo Olympics after he had surgery to treat an infection in his right knee that occurred following a crash at the Tour de France.
The Slovak Olympic Committee and the Slovak Cycling Federation said Sagan won’t be able to fully recover in time for the Tokyo Games.
They announced the news on Tuesday, a day after the surgery near Sagan’s home in Monaco.
Sagan tangled with Caleb Ewan on the third stage of the Tour and went down hard at high speed. The knee was hit by the chainring on his bike, leaving a deep gash that his Bora-Hansgrohe team treated with antibiotic ointment for the past 10 days. But eventually the infection became too serious for Sagan to continue with the race.
MORE ON TOKYO OLYMPICS
- Olympic flame arrives in Tokyo for no-spectator relay
- Tokyo 2020: Can you imagine an Olympics without the flags and jingoistic spirit?
- Tokyo 2020: This Indian team capable of scoring in dying minutes, says legendary goalkeeper
- ‘Strange atmosphere’: Disappointed athletes brace for crowd-free Tokyo Games
The 31-year-old Sagan was expected to compete alongside older brother Juraj Sagan for Slovakia in the Olympic road race in 11 days.
The Slovak Olympic Committee said Lukas Kubis will replace Sagan in Tokyo.
Sagan, one of the most accomplished cyclists of the past decade, skipped the road race at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and, instead, competed in mountain biking but a punctured tire early in the race ruined his medal chances.
Andreescu withdraws due to pandemic scare
London: Canada’s Bianca Andreescu has decided not to compete in Tokyo due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the former US Open champion said on Monday.
Andreescu is the latest big-name player to opt out of the July 23-August 8 Games. Rafa Nadal, Dominic Thiem, Stan Wawrinka, Nick Kyrgios, Serena Williams and Simona Halep have already announced their decisions to skip the pandemic-delayed Olympics.
“I have been dreaming of representing Canada at the Olympics since I was a little girl,” world number five Andreescu said on Instagram.
“But with all the challenges we are facing as it relates to the pandemic, I know that deep in my heart this is the right decision to make for myself.” The 21-year-old, who last competed at Wimbledon where she lost in the first round, said she looked forward to representing Canada in Fed Cup ties and at the 2024 Paris Olympics.