PARIS, April 19, 2010 (AFP) – Sylvain Chavanel, the highest placed French rider in Sunday’s Amstel Gold Race (16th), will be missing in action on Wednesday at the Fleche Wallonne in Belgium, and will return to Liege-Bastogne-Liege, the third act Ardennes classics Sunday.

“It was expected. I do not have much hope in the rise of the wall of Huy,” said Chavanel smiling: “I am a bit heavy for this type of slope!”

In contrast, the French team Quick Step has marked a great motivation for the appointment of “Dean” Sunday: “I like these long races, demanding, like the Tour of Flanders or ‘Liege’.”

“I did not run ‘Liège’ the past two years,” noted Sylvain Chavanel that included a recognition of the course after his return Thursday in Wallonia.