15 January 2020, Adelaide (AUS)
Patrick Bevin will miss the Santos Tour Down Under after undergoing treatment for an episode of cardiac arrhythmia.
Bevin experienced an irregular heartbeat during training with an electrocardiogram (ECG) later confirming supraventricular arrhythmia, which has since been treated.
“Patrick Bevin was admitted to the Calvary Wakefield Hospital in Adelaide after noticing some irregularities in his heartbeat during training. Patrick does not have a history of heart problems however, an electrocardiogram detected an episode of supraventricular arrhythmia. Fortunately, this is a non-life threatening condition and is quite common, but it did require immediate treatment to regulate the heart rhythm,” CCC Team Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Testa explained.
“Thankfully, Patrick experienced this episode whilst with the team and we were able to treat the arrhythmia immediately. We will continue to monitor his recovery and run further tests as a precaution however, as we are less than a week out from the race, Patrick will not be in a position to line up at the Santos Tour Down Under. Patrick will return to New Zealand, where we are confident he will make a full recovery and will be able to resume his racing program shortly.”
Bevin is understandably disappointed not to return to the Santos Tour Down Under, the first goal of his season, after winning a stage and leading the race in 2019.
“It’s disappointing to miss the race after preparing all off season for it and especially after coming so close to the win last year. I was looking forward to returning and trying to repeat my success however, it’s definitely a case of being safe than sorry and the timing has made it impossible to race here in Adelaide,” Bevin said.
“I feel completely fine now and it’s now just a matter of rest and recovery to ensure it doesn’t happen again. With the solid block of off season training in my legs, I’m confident I can still have a strong start to the season one month later than planned.”
Guillaume Van Keirsbulck is en route to Adelaide to replace Bevin in the team’s roster.
“Obviously, this is an unexpected change to my program but I am looking forward to starting my 2020 season in Australia. I’ve raced the Santos Tour Down Under once before in 2016 and really enjoyed the racing and the atmosphere,” Van Keirsbulck added.
Santos Tour Down Under (21-26 January)
Rider roster: Josef Černý (CZE), Simon Geschke (GER), Joey Rosskopf (USA), Szymon Sajnok (POL), Guillaume Van Keirsbulck (BEL), Francisco Ventoso (ESP) Łukasz Wiśniowski (POL).
