Movistar protects Uijtdebroeks from himself and pulls him out of the Tour de France

Uijtdebroeks had already been dropped when he climbed into the team car before reaching the summit. His withdrawal brought an early and painful conclusion to a Tour that was supposed to mark the beginning of a new chapter in his career.

The 23-year-old joined Movistar with the ambition of leading the Spanish team in cycling’s biggest stage races. His Tour debut was intended to confirm that status. Instead, it quickly became a battle simply to remain in the race.

The first warning signs appeared during the team time trial, when Uijtdebroeks was unable to stay with his Movistar teammates. He continued to lose time over the following stages and later revealed that he had been riding with a fever.

Movistar initially attributed his condition to illness before identifying a bacterial stomach infection as the likely cause. Although the team reported signs of improvement ahead of the first mountain stage, his performance on the road told a different story.

On the Col d’Aspin, Uijtdebroeks stopped briefly after appearing to experience a problem with his shoe. He managed to return to the group, but his difficulties became impossible to disguise in the descent. He vomited and struggled to retain the fluids and calories needed to cope with the heat and the demands of a Tour stage.

The final decision came on the Tourmalet. Once Uijtdebroeks was dropped again, Movistar’s staff concluded that allowing him to continue would serve no sporting or medical purpose.

Sports director Jürgen Roelandts said the team had hoped the rider’s condition was beginning to improve because he appeared healthier away from the bike. Once the racing started, however, there was little evidence of genuine recovery.

“The heat and his stomach problems meant he could not keep enough fluids or energy inside,” Roelandts explained to Sporza. “After he vomited on the descent of the Aspin, we told him that it had been enough.”

Movistar had encouraged Uijtdebroeks to continue for two more days in the hope that his health would stabilise. Roelandts acknowledged that riders are sometimes pushed to endure difficult moments at the Tour, but said the responsibility ultimately rested with the team.

“A rider never wants to abandon,” he said. “When it is clear that continuing is no longer sensible, we have to make that decision for him.”

The decision to withdraw Uijtdebroeks also followed mounting criticism of Movistar’s handling of his illness. After the Belgian revealed that he had been racing with a fever, former riders and journalists questioned why the team’s medical staff had allowed him to continue, particularly during stages held in temperatures approaching 40 degrees Celsius.

The debate intensified when Movistar attempted to distinguish between Uijtdebroeks being feverish and having a clinically defined fever. Roelandts said the rider’s temperature had been measured at 37.3 degrees before one stage and stressed that the team doctor retained final responsibility. 

The explanation did little to silence concerns about dehydration, cardiac complications and the cumulative effects of racing while suffering from a gastrointestinal infection. By eventually removing him from the Tour, Movistar protected its rider, although critics will argue that the intervention should have come sooner.

The physical recovery may not take long, but the disappointment will be harder to shake off. Uijtdebroeks had spent months preparing for his Tour debut and travelled to France as Movistar’s leader.

Having to leave the race after less than a week will hurt, even if illness left him with little choice. The focus now shifts to his recovery and what comes next, with the Vuelta a España already being mentioned as a possible new target.