A hard blow for Richard Carapaz and the EF Education-EasyPost team: the winner of the polka-dotted jersey of last year's Tour de France will not be able to defend his title in the 2025 edition of the Grande Boucle.

The 32-year-old Ecuadorian runner complained of severe abdominal pain and a high fever while training in his homeland. After a series of tests and medical checks, he was diagnosed with a gastrointestinal infection that required antibiotics to manage the pain and fever.

Both the EF Education team and the Ecuadorian national team medical staff have advised against long trips and competitions at this time, effectively forcing Carapaz to withdraw from the Tour.

“We are all devastated for Richard,” said Jonathan Vaughters, founder and CEO of EF Pro Cycling. “He came out of the Giro in incredible form and was recording his best power numbers in training. He’s sacrificed a lot to get to that level, so the timing couldn’t be worse.”

The prognosis is still positive and, after recovery, Carapaz will aim for the Vuelta a España that will start on August 23 from Piedmont. A race that has seen him protagonist in the past with a second place in 2020, three stage victories and the polka dot jersey in 2022, and a fourth place in the 2024 edition.

For fantasy cycling, this is certainly important news to take into consideration, given that Carapaz was among the favorites to win mountain stages and the climbers' classification at the Tour.

Sprint Cycling Photo