Following today's announcement that he will retire at the World Championships, Thor Hushovd has issued the following statement to his fans:

"This is a big relief for me because this mononucleosis is something that has been going on for months. I did not want to stop, but because I love the sport and love to compete and because of the problem I have, I just cannot do it anymore. On my bad days, I am suffering quite a bit. On the other side, I have a bad feeling about it in my gut because I am ending in a way that I didn't want it to end. If I was to write the last perfect chapter, it would not end like this. But there are some things in life you cannot control and I just have to accept that.

"My plan now is to finish the season well. I think the world champion is a great race to stop and also because I won the world championships, it is a race that I admire. So I would like to stop my season there. But it's up to the team, and not up to me, to decide when my season ends.

"In my time with the BMC Racing Team, I met a lot of great people and always had enjoyed great support during a difficult time for me and the team. They invested a lot in me to win races and I never gave them this back. But I always had great support from Andy Rihs and Jim Ochowicz and the rest of the team and the staff. So I really appreciated this."