Jumbo-Visma gives Primož Roglič the green light for Vuelta a España

This article originally appeared on Velo News

Jumbo-Visma has confirmed that Primoz Roglic will race the Vuelta a Espana (August 19 to September 11) with the Slovenian set to lead the team in his quest to win a fourth straight title.

Roglic has not raced since abandoning the Tour de France in July. He crashed on stage 5 and suffered several injuries, including a dislocated shoulder. He battled through until the third week but eventually quit in order to regain his form and fitness for a possible Vuelta Espana tilt.

Also read: Vuelta a Espana preview: Fireworks assured even without the 'Big Four'

The three-time Vuelta winner returned to training roughly a fortnight ago but the team were reluctant to make plans. Sepp Kuss was mentioned for a possible ‘free role’ as late as Friday with the team management and doctors scheduling a call for Monday morning in order to make final decision over Roglic’s possible participation. That call concluded with the team deciding to go all-in on Roglic.

“We are delighted that Primoz can start in the Vuelta after his serious injury in the Tour de France. Logically, he didn’t have the best preparation, but we greatly respect him for how he managed to get ready,” said lead sports director Merijn Zeeman.

“We have a good and balanced team at the start that can optimally support Primoz in all areas. It is a pity that Koen Bouwman will not make it to the start due to his injury. We would have loved to see him in the Vuelta in the great form he displayed during the last Giro d’Italia.”

Kuss is still set to race the Vuelta but his role is likely to revolve around once more supporting Roglic in the high mountains.

Rohan Dennis will also start the race. The Australian won the time trial at the Commonwealth Games earlier this month but then missed the road race due to illness. He was taken to hospital for tests and now looks set to start his first grand tour in Jumbo-Visma colors.

The rest of the team includes Sam Oomen, Robert Gesink, Chris Harper, Mike Teunissen, and Edoardo Affini.

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