After breaking his wrist in the Dubai Tour, Oliver Zaugg will miss the Ardennes classics which were supposed to be the first major highlight of his season. The former Il Lombardia winner is expected to return to competition in late April.

On the final stage of Tour of Dubai, Oliver Zaugg crashed and broke his wrist after a collision with a car as he was returning to the field after a wheel change. Having been recovering from the accident for 14 days, Zaugg has seen little progress and he will now miss the first important season target.

“Well, at the moment, it’s only possible for me to do some fitness workout, long walks and a little bit of training on the rollers and I see an ergo therapist three times a week," he said. "In the middle of March I’m undergoing minor surgery again to have the screw from my hand removed. That also means that I probably won’t be able to race again before the end of April. Of course, it’s frustrating to start the season like this but the important thing now is to focus on the things I can do to recover as fast as possible."

Last spring, Oliver had the misfortune of breaking his finger, which resulted in a similar setback in his preparations. The skillful climber’s biggest win was in 2011 where he won the prestigious Tour of Lombardy.

He was meant to play a key role in the Ardennes Classic campaign where the team aims high with last year's Amstel Gold Race winner Roman Kreuziger