The Glasgow Cycling World Championships will not be able to face the protagonist of African cycling: the Eritrean Biniam Girmaywinner of the Ghent-Wevelgem and stage of the Giro d’Italia 2022.
First up this Wednesday Cycling media GCN reported that Girmay and three other Eritrean cyclists were unable to participate in the World Cup after the UK denied them visas to enter the country.
However, a few hours later, Intermarché-Circus-Wanty, the team in which Girmay competes, issued a statement assuring that the Eritrean cyclist was out following his crash in the San Sebastián Clásica. “The second place in the world in the sub-23 category in Leuven went down to more than 60 km/h and he has suffered bruises and pain in his hip which will prevent him from defending his options in the World Cup elite”.
The press release released by the Intermarché also includes statements by Girmay on his absence from the World Cup. “I am very sorry that I cannot participate in the World Championships, which was one of my main goals of the season since last winter. I was in good shape after the Tour de France, but my crash at the San Sebastián Clásica caused me so much pain that it doesn’t allow me to defend my chances at the World Cup. My priority is to recover from the crash and start preparing for the latter part of the crash, with good goals in one-day races like the Grand Prix de Plouay or the Canadian Classics.”