The two-time triathlon world champion and professional cyclist will not take part in the road race on 4 August. Instead, she will concentrate on her speciality, the triathlon, which takes place on 31 July. She has not ruled out competing in the time trial on 27 July. Knibb has been replaced on the USA cycling team by Faulkner.

The reigning Olympic time trial champion Primoz Roglic won't be defending his title at Paris 2024 after opting out of the Slovenian national team, who will also be missing Urška Zigart, the women's national road race and time trial queen, as well as the girlfriend of clear favourite Tadej Pogačar.

Ayuso tops the list of cyclists announced yesterday by the Spanish federation for the Olympic Games. It is a very young squad, with Ayuso doubling up in both the time trial and road race. The two most recent national champions will be looking to spring a surprise in a possible reduced group.

The Slovenian is leading the French race after the first nine stages. He leads Remco Evenepoel by 33 seconds and Jonas Vingegaard by 1:15 after dominating the Galibier summit. The first week also saw Cavendish break the record for Tour victories. Eritrea's Girmay was also confirmed.

From Tuesday 9 July to 14 July, the Lausitz Velodrome in Cottbus will host the 2024 European Track Cycling Championships for juniors and under-23s. A total of 425 cyclists from 29 countries will compete for 44 titles in various disciplines.

The Danish rider left the Grand Boucles after a week of competition "to focus on other goals". He injured his shoulder in a crash on the fifth stage and decided to prepare for the Olympic road race at home.

The new system will give priority to riders' results in top international events. There will be 72 riders in the sprint and endurance leagues, with 18 men and 18 women in each category. The UCI points awarded will remain the same. World champions will also have some additional privileges.

At the age of 39 and after a difficult period, the British sprinter beat the best sprinters in the fifth stage of the 2024 Tour. In doing so, he surpassed the legendary Belgian in stage wins in the Grand Boucle. He equalled the record in 2021, but has faced many difficulties since then. He finally did it.

Mountain bike enthusiasts now have a rare opportunity to compete and compare their times with some of Europe's best riders in a beautiful and challenging terrain. The UEC MTB Marathon European Championships will be held in Viborg on 18 August 2024.

The Slovenian attacked in the final kilometre of the Alpine giant, with only Vingegaard close behind. He crested the summit with an 8-second lead, but on the descent he extended his advantage to 50 seconds over his main rival. Pogacar attacked first and the Dane couldn't keep up. Behind them, Ayuso, Rodríguez and Evenepoel remained in the lead group.

The Grand Boucle will start this Saturday in Florence and, for the first time in its history, will end outside the gates of Paris. The best version of Pogacar will face the uncertainty of defending champion Vingegaard, who is coming back from a serious crash in April. 21 stages, 3,498 kilometres, two crossings of the Alps and a final time trial in Nice. A plot worthy of Alfred Hitchcock.

The International Testing Agency (ITA), which leads cycling's clean sport efforts on behalf of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), will protect fair play at the Tour de France with a comprehensive anti-doping programme.

Next Saturday's Grand Boucle will see a duel between the Slovenian with two victories and the Dane with two. Pogacar will be in top form and aiming for a Giro-Tour double. Vingegaard, on the other hand, is recovering from a serious crash. For the first time, the Tour starts in Italy and doesn't end in Paris. Everything is new in the world's greatest race after 11 editions.

US team EF Education-EasyPost immediately sacked the Italian rider, stating in a press release that "Piccolo was arrested on 21 June upon entry into the country on suspicion of transporting growth hormone". The UCI said it was "satisfied with the results of the investigation carried out by the ITA".

The reigning champion of the French race has confirmed through a statement from his team, Visma-Lease, that he has overcome the effects of the serious crash he suffered in April. He will race to defend his title. "I feel good and very motivated," confirmed the Danish rider.