Hesjedal victim of upper respiratory tract infection at Giro

When Ryder Hesjedal abandoned the 2013 Giro d’Italia before its 13th stage this past Friday, little was known about what was causing him to struggle during the stage race. After the Stage 8 time trial, the 2012 Giro winner hypothesized that he might have been suffering from “TT butt.” However, he continued to suffer on the climbs. On Tuesday, four days, after he quit the race, the team revealed that Hesjedal developed an upper respiratory tract infection.

“It appears that Ryder had been exposed to the virus affecting many in the peloton during the first week of racing,” said Garmin-Sharp team physician Phil Stawski in a statement. “Secondary to his outstanding form and conditioning, the more typical symptoms did not manifest until later; however, the effect on his body and performance was already occurring. His effort during the TT and in the cold and wet conditions continued to impact his body’s ability to fight the infection and he ultimately succumbed. The only option to prevent the worsening of his condition was to stop racing and allow him to recover.”

The medical staff believes Hesjedal will be able to start training again in a week. He is targeting the Tour de Suisse as his first post-recovery race.

“We look forward to getting Ryder recovered, healthy and back on the road and racing again,” said team manager Jonathan Vaughters. “He was in great condition before the Giro and while it’s a shame that he got so sick, we’re glad he is starting to come around. Our team staff will continue to work closely with him to get him healthy again, that’s priority No. 1. But we’ll all be glad to get him back to racing.”

“Its hard to watch the Giro from home and not be there with my team. But watching Ramunas’ ride [Tuesday was] inspiring,” said Hesjedal. “The team’s been great with helping me. I appreciate all the support. I look forward to getting back on the road and racing again at Suisse and will take it day by day from there.”