Giro d’Italia 2020: Michael Matthews withdraws from race after coronavirus diagnosis 

Michael Matthews has withdrawn from the Giro d’Italia after testing positive for coronavirus. 

The Sunweb sprinter will not start stage 10 after he was diagnosed with Covid-19 during testing on the first rest day. 

All riders and staff at the 2020 Giro were tested for coronavirus on Monday (October 12), with two riders and six staff members returning positive results. 

>>> Mitchelton-Scott withdraws entire team from Giro d’Italia after coronavirus positives

Sunweb have confirmed that Matthews is one of the riders, while Steven Kruijswijk (Jumbo-Visma) is the second rider to leave after also testing positive for coronavirus during the rest day. 

Mitchelton-Scott have also pulled their entire team from the race after four staff members were diagnosed with coronavirus. 

A statement from Matthews’s Sunweb team said: “After undergoing a PCR test at yesterday’s Giro d’Italia rest day, Sunweb’s Michael Matthews has tested positive for Covid-19. He is currently asymptomatic, feels healthy and after receiving the results early this morning, he is now in quarantine.

All other riders and staff returned a negative test and at this stage, no other team member displays symptoms of COVID-19. 

“The team will continue to closely monitor all within their bubble, operating with as much discipline as possible, doing the maximum it can.” 

A total of six team staff members working at the Giro d’Italia have also tested positive for coronavirus, including four from Mitchelton-Scott, one from AG2R La Mondiale and one from Ineos Grenadiers.

After pulling their general classification leader Simon Yates out of the race after he contracted coronavirus in the first week, Mitchelton-Scott have now opted to withdraw their entire team from the race to protect the health of their riders and staff.

All those who have tested positive for Covid-19 have been left in the care of their team’s doctors and will undergo isolation procedures.