Barloworld's star climber, Mauricio Soler, who took home the polka dot jersey from the Tour de France, went under the knife on Friday in Milan, Italy to repair injuries in his right wrist. The Colombian rider won the Tour de Burgos before crashing in the Coppa Agostoni in August, but the injured wrist, according to a team press release, was "tendonitis due to several past injuries".
Soler decided to end his season early to undergo the surgery, which will keep him in a cast until mid-October. Soler will return to his homeland of Colombia next Thursday to recuperate, and then will be back with his team when the cast comes off. "He will be back in road-training on December", team director Claudio Corti said. Soler will be back in Europe in time to attend the 2008 Tour de France official presentation on October 25th in Paris.
