Max Poole has been ruled out of the Vuelta a España after being diagnosed with Epstein-Barr virus. The 21-year-old Team Picnic PostNL rider had been struggling for several weeks, first noticing that he wasn’t responding to training and then suffering further decline during the Tour de Pologne, where he was withdrawn for medical checks. Tests have now confirmed the presence of the virus, which will keep him off the bike for an extended period.
“It’s been a difficult few weeks trying to work out what the situation was and I appreciate the support the team has given me during this period,” Poole said. “I’m pretty relieved to now understand the root of the problem as it means that I can start to focus on recovery and getting my health back on track. I’m really disappointed to miss the team at the Vuelta, and wish them the best of luck there.”
Head coach Rudi Kemna explained the decision to remove him from Poland: “Max didn’t come away from altitude feeling as we’d hoped, and when he continued to decline during Poland we removed him from the race on medical grounds to conduct thorough investigations. Now that we know the full extent of his illness, our focus is simply on looking after him and giving him the time and support he needs to recover fully.”
Team doctor Camiel Aldershof added that the diagnosis requires a longer recovery: “We’ve been looking into the possible reasons for Max’s health problems over the past few weeks, and today we confirmed that he has Epstein-Barr virus with glandular fever. Sadly, this means he’ll need a longer period of rest while we work on getting him back to full health. Now we know what’s behind his symptoms, we can start moving in the right direction with his recovery.”
Photo Credit: Cor VosEpstein-Barr has been a recurring challenge for riders in the peloton. Mark Cavendish is among the highest-profile cases, sidelined in 2018 and 2019 when the virus and its after-effects derailed his career for several seasons. In his recent documentary, he described the toll it took on his health and mental wellbeing before his eventual return to the top level. That experience underlines how unpredictable recovery can be.
For Poole, the priority now is to rest and allow his body the time it needs. The clarity of diagnosis at least gives both rider and team a direction, even if his absence from the Vuelta represents a major setback in what had been planned as another step forward in his stage racing career.
