BORA – ARGON 18 rider Dominik Nerz had to give up at today's 11th stage of the Tour de France. The 25-year-old leader of the German team was struggling with severe stomach problems since yesterday's stage that no longer allowed his participation. Before the stage, Nerz was the best German on the 21st place overall and had his target, a position among the Top15, firmly in mind. With the abandonment of Nerz, BORA – ARGON 18 is down to seven riders for the second half of the Tour, as Andreas Schillinger abandoned before the 4th stage due to an infection.

"Due to my stomach problems I have hardly slept tonight. I'm devastated, I have no energy left and I need to understand somehow what happened. It hurts incredibly to let the team down. They have always stood by me and supported me in the best possible way. Giving up is the worst thing that can happen to a rider – there are no words", said a disappointed Dominik Nerz.

"This is a very serious setback for the team. Dominik was our GC candidate and we were absolutely on track for our goal. Despite his rib injury he came very well through the first week of the Tour, thanks to his teammates. But now the stomach problems were too exhausting to continue the Tour. This suffering is also one side of the Tour - though the most unpleasant", said Team Manager Ralph Denk.

"Given the situation, we’ll change our tactic completely. From now on, all riders have a carte blanche to focus completely on stage results. We have seven guys who are absolutely ambitious and they all have the quality to take a step into the spotlight. From this we take our optimism in this difficult moment", Denk concluded.