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López misses training camp after COVID-19 positive: Daily News Digest

Hello again, CyclingTips readers,

Tuesday’s headlines brought news that Miguel Ángel López is missing Movistar’s training camp after testing positive for COVID-19, Stefan Denifl has received a prison sentence, and Philippe Gilbert is uncertain of his form as he continues to work his way back after a knee injury, to mention only some of the days news items.

Read on for the latest from the world of cycling.

Dane Cash
News Editor

What’s news?

López misses training camp after COVID-19 positive

Miguel Ángel López is not attending the Movistar training camp in Almeria, Spain, after having tested positive for COVID-19. His new team announced the news on Tuesday, saying that López had tested positive for the virus on Monday.

According to the team, López had tested negative before traveling to Europe, but then was tested again after he learned that a close contact had tested positive, and it was that test that returned a positive result.

Denifl receives prison sentence

Stefan Denifl, who admitted to blood doping after being implicated in the Operation Aderlass investigation, received a prison sentence on Tuesday in Austria for fraud.

Denifl has spent the past several months on trial for sporting fraud, accused of doping between 2014 and 2018. He confessed to having doped, although his defense argued that he had fulfilled his contracts with the teams he rode for. He also denied having stashed money for fraudulent purposes, a charge on which he was acquitted.

On Tuesday, he received a two-year prison sentence, albeit with 16 of the 24 months suspended. He was also fined €349,000.

Gilbert uncertain over form as he works his way back from knee injury

Philippe Gilbert is hoping to return to his best in time for the Classics this year, but still uncertain about whether that will happen as he works his way back from the knee injury he suffered at least year’s Tour de France. The 38-year-old Belgian broke his kneecap on the opening stage of the Tour, and he said on Monday that the recovery process has been a challenge.

Gilbert is still hopeful that he can achieve his dream of winning Milan-San Remo, the one Monument he has yet to win in his career, but said that the offseason has been tough.

“I’m still working hard to get my knee in order. I can now train almost pain-free, but the injury was much worse than expected,” Gilbert said, according to Het Nieuwsblad. “I have lost a lot of muscle, including in my left leg. When I resumed my road training this winter, I reached the level of someone just starting to ride a bike. I had never experienced that before.”

Ellingworth: McLaren departure led to Bahrain team exit

Rod Ellingworth, who has returned to the Ineos Grenadiers organization following one season as a team principal at Bahrain-McLaren, has told Cyclingnews that he decided to leave Bahrain-McLaren due to McLaren’s departure as a title sponsor.

“For me, the reason for going there in the first place was because of McLaren. That whole side was the reason for me to go there. Without that, it just made it harder for me to see that journey,” Ellingworth said. “John Allert was the guy that drew me into the team and I really enjoyed working with John and the McLaren side. I was really excited about bringing that side into our sport. Without that, other things come up, and that was the key fundamental reason for me to change.”

Urán’s shoe fix

A day after revealing on social media that he had fracture the little toe of his left foot, Rigoberto Urán posted video documentation on social media of his efforts to alter his footwear in attempt to make cycling a bit more comfortable.

In other words, Urán sliced small opening for his injured toe into his Sidi shoes. He then hopped on the trainer to test things out.

Sea Otter announces 2021 dates

Sea Otter has announced its dates for 2021 after organizers decided not to run the event at its usual time in May due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Instead, the cycling festival in Monterey, California, will run from October 7 to 10.

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