Il Lombardia

Blue squad's leader calls out of Il Lombardia after last-minute sickness, ends 2012 season. Cobo, Pardilla replace the Spaniard, injured Amador

An unfortunate flu suffered in the last few hours by Alejandro Valverde has forced the Movistar Team leader not to participate at Il Lombardia tomorrow. The Spanish rider was forced to stop training since Wednesday due to high fever, rising today and avoidin him travelling to Italy. Valverde will thus be missing a race in which he was much confident about his chances after his bronze medal at last Sunday’s World Championships, still not overshadowing a dream 2012 that now ends for the Movistar Team cyclist.

His absence, along with Andrey Amador’s fractures following yesterday’s crash at the Gran Piemonte -also marking the Costa Rican’s 2012 season end-, have taken the Blue squad to make a last-minute move and take two riders into their Italian expedition: Juanjo Cobo and Sergio Pardilla will take the start in Bergamo tomorrow at the final monument of the season, completing a lineup that includes the already-present Visconti, Bruseghin, Costa, Gutiérrez, Lastras and Quintana.