Swift ends season early

Ben Swift of Team Sky has ended his season early to prepare for a shoulder operation over the winter. It's the end of what had already been a tough campaign for the Brit; he crashed at the Trofeo Alcudia in February, and has reportedly struggled with the shoulder injury for the best part of three years. 

Swift did not start stage 2 of the Eneco Tour currently taking place in Belgium this week; the Belgian roads and difficult crosswinds obviously not being the suitable conditions for a rider struggling with an injury. Swift has raced just 34 days this year, not what he had been hoping for, but the 25 year old remains optimistic about the future;

"On the one it's a bad end to a tough year, but on the other hand I'm almost quite relieved in a way to find out that there's a reason why I haven't been firing on all cylinders this year." 

He also said he aims to start in February next year, so there is no rush for Swift to get back on the bike once the operation is complete, and he has stated that he will not even touch the bike while his shoulder is still in rehab, in contrast to his last rehabilitation, which was spent doing hours on the stationary bike. 

The young sprinter will hope that next year will bring a return to the form that saw him ride a debut Tour de France in 2011, and that brought him two stage wins at the Tour of Poland in 2012.