Lidl-Trek explains change to Mads Pedersen’s Tour de France build up in green jersey pursuit

The Danish rider had initially been scheduled to combine the Boucles de la Mayenne with the Belgian stage race before heading to the Tour. Instead, Pedersen returned to training after racing in France and will make his next competitive appearance at the Danish national championships.

For a rider who usually relies heavily on racing to sharpen his form, the decision represents a notable change. Lidl-Trek sports director Kim Andersen explained that the team wanted to give Pedersen more time to train while also limiting the risks of another setback.

“Mads completed a demanding training block after the Boucles de la Mayenne, so we decided this was the best way to continue his preparation,” Andersen said to In de Leiderstrui.

“There is always a certain amount of risk involved in a race like the Baloise Belgium Tour. The stages are short, the peloton is large and there are cobbled sections. It is a very good race, but every additional day of racing creates another opportunity for something to happen.”

That consideration has been particularly important for Pedersen following a difficult start to the season. He fractured his left wrist and right collarbone in a crash at the Tour of Valencia in February, forcing him into an intensive rehabilitation programme.

Pedersen returned to competition just six weeks later at Milan-Sanremo. Although he did not reach his usual peak level during the spring, he still finished inside the top ten in each of the five major one day races he contested, including the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.

After the classics, the former world champion took an extended break to recover from both the racing and the physical demands of his rehabilitation.

The risks associated with racing were underlined during the Baloise Belgium Tour itself. Pedersen’s teammate Søren Kragh Andersen, who is also in contention for a place in Lidl-Trek’s Tour squad, crashed heavily during the second stage and was forced to abandon.

Lidl-Trek acknowledged that Pedersen’s new preparation is less conventional than his usual approach. The team believes the uninterrupted training period could leave him fresher for July, although Andersen admitted there is no certainty it will produce the desired result.

“We know Mads normally likes to race before his major objectives,” he said. “We hope he responds well to this approach, but there are never any guarantees.”

Pedersen is expected to play a central role for Lidl-Trek at the Tour de France, where the team will arrive with several different objectives.

Juan Ayuso is set to lead the team’s general classification challenge, while Pedersen will target stage victories and the points classification.

Pedersen has already won the points classification at both the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta a España, but has yet to complete the set at the Tour.

“The green jersey is clearly a major goal,” Andersen confirmed.

With a demanding route expected to provide opportunities for powerful sprinters and Classics specialists, Pedersen should have several chances to collect points and establish himself as one of the main contenders for the green jersey, which was won last year by his teammate Jonathan Milan.