Cancellara: I know I have to work

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Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack-Nissan) returned to competitive action at the Bayern-Rundfahrt last week, and the Swiss rider said that the race was a useful gauge of his form ahead of his objectives later in the summer.

After his classics campaign was cut short by the broken collarbone sustained in his crash at the Tour of Flanders, Cancellara turned his focus to preparations for the London 2012 Olympics in particular, although he admitted that his recovery had been more complicated than first anticipated.

Cancellara abandoned the Bayern-Rundfahrt on the final stage, while on the previous day, he could only manage 14th in the time trial, 1:15 down on winner Michael Rogers (Sky). Given the road he has travelled since April 1, however, Cancellara was pleased simply to be back in action.

“I’m convinced that it was a good race to get into competition,” Cancellara told Het Nieuwsblad. “You know that when you’re not in condition, a time trial like that is really hard.

“I woke up on Sunday with a destroyed body and stuffy nose. But ultimately it proved to be a useful experience. I know now that I have to work.”

While tensions between Johan Bruyneel and the Schleck brothers were exacerbated by Frank Schleck’s withdrawal from the Giro d’Italia, Cancellara was last week given a forceful vote of confidence by his manager, who said that he was the only rider assured of his place in RadioShack-Nissan’s Tour de France line-up.