Steven Kruijswijk (Belkin) has had a less than satisfactory season so far and now it would appear that the reason for his relatively poor showing has been diagnosed.

The Belkin rider will have to submit to surgery on his femoral artery in late September. This forces the Dutch rider to forego the Vuelta a España which starts on August 24 as it would be impossible for him to put in the good performance he would expect and demand of himself, he said.

Kruijswijk went through similar surgery on this same artery five years ago, but has now again developed a snarl in the artery and contraction of the veins.

"It's not nice, but I was relieved when the research recently showed that this problem is the reason for the disappointing results," the Belkin rider explained to Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf.

“Two years ago I could stay with the best ten climbers at the Giro. This year I was unable to do so. I want to have the chance to once again bring that last ten or fifteen percent to be among the best. With his problem that won't happen. That made the decision easier.”

His forthcoming surgery doesn’t force Kruijswijk into passivity, however. His race itinerary will be subjected to alterations, though, as he will skip the Spanish grand tour and go to Canada instead.

“Instead of the Vuelta, I will be at the start of the races in Canada: the Tour of Alberta, Quebec GC and Montreal GC. Here I will close my season as well as possible and try to the maximum out,” Kruijswijk stated on his personal website.