{"id":251377,"date":"2026-07-04T12:56:30","date_gmt":"2026-07-04T12:56:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/04\/arnaud-de-lie-and-edoardo-affini-recover-from-pre-tour-de-france-misfortunes-to-start-in-barcelona\/"},"modified":"2026-07-04T12:56:30","modified_gmt":"2026-07-04T12:56:30","slug":"arnaud-de-lie-and-edoardo-affini-recover-from-pre-tour-de-france-misfortunes-to-start-in-barcelona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/07\/04\/arnaud-de-lie-and-edoardo-affini-recover-from-pre-tour-de-france-misfortunes-to-start-in-barcelona\/","title":{"rendered":"Arnaud De Lie and Edoardo Affini recover from pre-Tour de France misfortunes to start in Barcelona"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<p id=\"elk-1fae1bd8-de08-4b5e-b1d3-634adc87b433\"><a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/riders\/arnaud-de-lie\/\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/riders\/arnaud-de-lie\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/riders\/arnaud-de-lie\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Arnaud De Lie<\/a> and <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/riders\/edoardo-affini\/\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/riders\/edoardo-affini\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/riders\/edoardo-affini\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Edoardo Affini<\/a> are both back on the mend ahead of the Tour de France after the pair fell victim to double misfortune \u2013 an illness and a crash \u2013 shortly before the upcoming Grand Tour.<\/p>\n<p>De Lie, who in May was forced out of the Giro d&#8217;Italia in the first week after starting the race ill, missed the team presentation of the Tour de France on Thursday due to a stomach problem.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-seasonal\"\/><\/p>\n<aside data-block-type=\"embed\" data-render-type=\"fte\" data-skip=\"dealsy\" data-widget-type=\"seasonal\" class=\"hawk-root\"\/>\n<p id=\"elk-1fae1bd8-de08-4b5e-b1d3-634adc87b433-2\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">However, it appears that the issue won&#8217;t linger far into the race, even if he faces a challenging start to the Tour as a result.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-6 w-full overflow-hidden rounded-[10px] lg:my-8\" data-component-name=\"JwPlayer:Carousel\" data-jwp-carousel=\"\" data-jwp-carousel-payload=\"{&quot;ids&quot;:{&quot;playerID&quot;:&quot;jYDCcabO&quot;,&quot;searchPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;divID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;fallbackPlaylistID&quot;:&quot;gwjdoYHD&quot;,&quot;fallbackDivID&quot;:&quot;botr_gwjdoYHD_jYDCcabO_div&quot;,&quot;key&quot;:&quot;X9\\\/mXVGac0NphghLH9hZaqWA5d3dhAM\\\/Ih07grnEyMLjuO2E&quot;,&quot;tintLogo&quot;:true,&quot;useSearchPlaylist&quot;:false,&quot;enabled&quot;:true},&quot;signPostingEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;signPostingLinkEnabled&quot;:true,&quot;waitForAdLoad&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnDesktop&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnMobile&quot;:false,&quot;hidePlayerOnTablet&quot;:false}\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-nowrap items-center justify-between gap-3 bg-zinc-900 px-[14px] py-3\" data-jwp-carousel-header=\"\">\n<div class=\"flex min-w-0 shrink items-center\"><span class=\"inline-flex items-center gap-1.5 text-sm font-article-heading capitalize leading-5 text-white whitespace-nowrap\"><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-mobile\"\/><span class=\"jwp-carousel-title-desktop\">Latest Videos From<\/span><span class=\"jwp-carousel-brand inline-flex items-center\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"aspect-video w-full min-h-[200px] lg:min-h-[330px] relative overflow-hidden bg-black\" data-jwp-carousel-container=\"\">\n<div class=\"absolute inset-0 size-full items-center justify-center bg-white\" data-jwp-carousel-fallback=\"\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" data-new-v2-image=\"true\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/flexiimages\/gmvwmhupgi1715762145.svg\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/flexiimages\/gmvwmhupgi1715762145.svg\" class=\"rounded-[var(--image--border-radius,0)] max-h-12 w-auto\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I got sick the day before yesterday,&#8221; De Lie said in a pre-race press conference on Friday, according to <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyclingpro.net\/spaziociclismo\/tour-2026\/tour-de-france-2026-arnaud-de-lie-in-ripresa-oggi-va-molto-meglio-ma-i-primi-giorni-saranno-soprattutto-una-questione-di-sopravvivenza-questo-e-certo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" data-url=\"https:\/\/cyclingpro.net\/spaziociclismo\/tour-2026\/tour-de-france-2026-arnaud-de-lie-in-ripresa-oggi-va-molto-meglio-ma-i-primi-giorni-saranno-soprattutto-una-questione-di-sopravvivenza-questo-e-certo\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\"><em>CyclingPro<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;I had a fever during the night and barely slept. Yesterday I was really sick. It certainly wasn&#8217;t ideal for my confidence.<\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet=\"\" class=\"clear-both pt-2 pb-0 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"&#10;            flex&#10;            after:content-[''] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]&#10;            before:content-[''] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]&#10;            font-article-heading pb-0 text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,1em)] uppercase sm:text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,0.875em)] font-bold&#10;        \"><br \/>\n            You may like<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;But today I&#8217;m much better. I still have a slight stomach discomfort, but I&#8217;ll be out for an hour soon. We&#8217;ll see how it goes.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">De Lie wasn&#8217;t likely to be a top contender during the opening days in Catalonia, which encompass a team time trial, a tough hilly race in Montju\u00efc Park, and a ride north into the mountains.<\/p>\n<div id=\"slice-container-newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-YNokFfx6kWArXWqKVKro2E\" class=\"slice-container newsletter-inbodyContent-slice newsletterForm-articleInbodyContent-YNokFfx6kWArXWqKVKro2E slice-container-newsletterForm\">\n<div data-hydrate=\"true\" class=\"newsletter-form__wrapper newsletter-form__wrapper--inbodyContent\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form__container\">\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__top-bar\"\/>\n<section class=\"newsletter-form__main-section\">\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">He&#8217;ll hope to be back to something approaching full strength for the sprinter-friendly days that come shortly after the <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/tour-de-france\/\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/tour-de-france\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/tour-de-france\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tour de France<\/a> reaches its homeland, with stages 5, 7, and 8 in Pau, Bordeaux, and Bergerac all looking set for big sprint showdowns.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;It&#8217;s not like last time. Back then it was a virus. This time we don&#8217;t know the cause, but a blood test showed that I haven&#8217;t developed any antibodies,&#8221; De Lie said, referring to his pre-Giro illness.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;Starting like this is certainly not ideal, but tomorrow I just have to make sure I get to the finish line within the time limit. The first few days of the Tour will be mostly about survival, that&#8217;s for sure.&#8221;<\/p>\n<aside data-component-name=\"Recirculation:ArticleRiver\" data-recirculation-type=\"inline\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Trending Bar\" data-nosnippet=\"\" class=\"clear-both pt-2 pb-0 mb-4\">\n        <span class=\"&#10;            flex&#10;            after:content-[''] after:flex-1 after:ml-4 after:my-[0.7rem] after:border-t after:border-solid after:border-t-[#ccc]&#10;            before:content-[''] before:flex-1 before:mr-4 before:my-[0.7rem] before:border-t before:border-solid before:border-t-[#ccc]&#10;            font-article-heading pb-0 text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,1em)] uppercase sm:text-[length:var(--article-river-title--font-size,0.875em)] font-bold&#10;        \"><br \/>\n            What to read next<br \/>\n        <\/span><\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">For Affini, meanwhile, he remains in the Visma-Lease a Bike selection after a hard crash last week at the Italian Time Trial Championships. The rouleur \u2013 who figures to be a key rider in the opening day TTT \u2013 was taken to hospital, but will be at the start on Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Affini did have doubts over whether he&#8217;d recover in time for the Tour, however.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;Especially that Thursday evening and Friday morning, I thought, &#8216;Yeah, I&#8217;m not going to make it&#8217;. I did have an MRI on Friday, and the result was positive,&#8221; Affini told <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wielerflits.nl\/nieuws\/edoardo-affini-vorige-week-heb-ik-gedacht-de-tour-ga-ik-niet-meer-halen\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.wielerflits.nl\/nieuws\/edoardo-affini-vorige-week-heb-ik-gedacht-de-tour-ga-ik-niet-meer-halen\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\"><em>WielerFlits<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;After that, there was a consultation with the team doctor and the medical staff, and they thought it would probably still be possible.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">&#8220;But we just have to see how things went in the days that followed. Fortunately, the recovery was fast enough to be here.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\">Affini&#8217;s swift recovery means that Visma head to the Tour without further changes to their optimal squad, with <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/teams-riders\/struggling-wout-van-aert-ruled-out-of-tour-de-france-in-big-blow-to-visma-lease-a-bike\/\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/teams-riders\/struggling-wout-van-aert-ruled-out-of-tour-de-france-in-big-blow-to-visma-lease-a-bike\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/teams-riders\/struggling-wout-van-aert-ruled-out-of-tour-de-france-in-big-blow-to-visma-lease-a-bike\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Wout van Aert<\/a> and Christophe Laporte both having already withdrawn due to injury.<\/p>\n<p aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"kiosq-b\"><em><strong>The world\u2019s biggest bike race deserves world-class coverage. Subscribe to Cyclingnews for unlimited access to our unrivalled reporting of the 2026 Tour de France. From Barcelona through to Paris, our experienced team will bring you breaking news, expert insight, and in-depth coverage from every stage as the battle for the yellow jersey plays out. Plus, access the Cyclingnews app to follow the action on the go! <\/strong><\/em><a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/subscription-paid\/?utm_source=Referral+link&amp;utm_medium=Website&amp;utm_campaign=PreTDF26\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/subscription-paid\/?utm_source=Referral+link&amp;utm_medium=Website&amp;utm_campaign=PreTDF26\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/subscription-paid\/?utm_source=Referral+link&amp;utm_medium=Website&amp;utm_campaign=PreTDF26\" rel=\"noopener\"><u><em><strong>Find out more.<\/strong><\/em><\/u><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cyclingnews.com\/pro-cycling\/teams-riders\/arnaud-de-lie-and-edoardo-affini-recover-from-pre-tour-de-france-misfortunes-to-start-in-barcelona\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Arnaud De Lie and Edoardo Affini are both back on the mend ahead of the Tour de France after the pair fell victim to double misfortune \u2013 an illness and a crash \u2013 shortly before the upcoming Grand Tour. De Lie, who in May was forced out of the Giro d&#8217;Italia in the first week [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":251378,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6804],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-251377","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/251377","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=251377"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/251377\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/251378"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=251377"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=251377"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=251377"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}