BRUSSELS, Feb 2, 2012 (AFP) – The Tour of Qatar has lost one of its marquee
names after Germany’s Andre Greipel pulled out of the race due to illness
Thursday.
Greipel, who claimed his maiden Tour de France stage win last year, has
enjoyed a blistering start to the season winning three stages and a pre-race
criterium at the Tour Down Under two weeks ago.
But his bid to test his early season sprinting legs against the likes of
British world champion Mark Cavendish will have to wait as he is suffering
from fever, caused by a stomach virus, according to his Lotto-Belisol team.
“We want to let Andre get better,” Lotto team manager Marc Sergeant said
Thursday.
“We have told the organizers (ASO). The Tour of Qatar is a hard race, if
you line up and you’re not 100 percent it could compromise the rest of your
season.”
Greipel is scheduled to return to the peloton for the Tour of Oman on
February 14-19.
The Tour of Qatar, which is traditionally favored by the sprinters, is
held from February 5-10.