Having been plagued by illness the last few days, Diego Ulissi won't start tomorrow's stage of the Giro d'Italia. The double stage winner sets his sights on the Italian championships.

With two stage wins and a second place in the time trial, Diego Ulissi has had a very successful Giro d'Italia but the Italian won't finish the race. For two days, he had been suffering from  a bacterical faringitis that caused him to race with a sore throat and a fever and despite undergoing antibiotic treatment, he and his Lampre-Merida team have taken the decision not to let him start tomorrow's stage.

"I can't go on," he said. "A sore throat, fever and antibiotics have turned the stage into a race of suffering race. I did my best to finish today's stage, but tomorrow I won't be at the start, so with regret I'll quit  this Giro d'Italia that gave me so many satisfactions and gave the appreciation of so many fans.

"There will be other important appointments in the season. First it will be the Italian championships. As soon as possible, I'll start training with the aim of hitting this target."