Tour de France runner-up Cadel Evans has been given a wild card spot in the Beijing Olympics road time trial by the International Cycling Union (UCI) and might still race if he can overcome a knee injury.
Evans pulled out of the time trial last week with the injury and was replaced by Australia’s three-time world champion Michael Rogers. But a day later, Evans received a call from Australian national performance director Shayne Bannan advising him the UCI was offering the team a second starting berth.
“Shayne Bannan called me with the news and I was on the table getting treatment with my knee all bandaged up in ice and an electro-stimulator attached and he said: ‘We’ve got that second place.’ I looked at my swollen knee and thought: ‘Oh good for you,’” Evans was quoted as saying yesterday.
The injury has responded well to treatment and both Bannan and Evans said there was still hope the 31-year-old would compete in both the road race and time trial.
The Beijing road race is on Saturday and the time trial on Aug. 13.
“Every day I’m doing the physio and treatment on my knee and every day it’s getting better, but we’ll decide on Monday [today] morning whether I go or Adam Hansen goes in my place,” Evans said of his chances of lining up in the road race. “Then beyond that, for me to go and start the time trial, I’d have to have a pretty stellar ride in the road race. I don’t want to go unless I can do a good result for myself and the team or contribute to a good result for the team. So if I don’t recover from my injury and am not close to my best, I don’t mind staying at home.”
Bannan said a series of test runs on Evans indicated his knee was improving.
“Treatment on Cadel’s knee has been going well and we’re hopeful that on Monday he’ll get the all clear to fly to Beijing,” Bannan said. “Considering the progress of his recovery we’re optimistic that he can back up after the road race and give the time trial a decent go.”
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