A year ago, Wout Poels announced that he wanted to get the chance as a leader at the Giro d’Italia. The Ducthman will now have to postpone the goal as he has told NOS that he will skip the Giro in 2017.

The change is not due to Poels’ personal request but because Team Sky has other plans for him.  

"I asked them but it did work out, unfortunately”, he said with some bitterness. “This is the only negative thing when riding for a big team like Sky." 

Despite his Grand Tour potential, demonstrated again this season as a lieutenant for Chris Froome at the Tour de France, Wout Poels will still have to wait before having his chance in the British team. As in 2016, Mikel Landa will be the only leader Sky at the Giro,.

Wout Poels, on the other hand, will have a program similar to that of 2016. He will compete in the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana which he won in 2016, and then he will head to Paris-Nice, the Classics, including Liège-Bastogne-Liège where he is the defending champion, and then the Tour de Suisse. Finally, he will go to the Tour with Chris Froome who targets a fourth crown. The Vuelta could be added to the program but once again, Froome is likely to be the leader.