Roglic (LottoNL-Jumbo) has negotiated niggling complaints since a breakthrough Tour de France in which he went from dark horse to household name.
The 28-year-old won a stage and finished fourth overall at the Tour but suffered from an elbow infection in the aftermath. The complaint was enough for Roglic to withdraw himself from selection for the time trial World Championships in which he claimed a silver medal last year.
The treated infection that interrupted training has since been compounded with illness as well as celebrations and media commitments stemming from his emphatic performance.
“It was quite busy all the time. I didn’t ride the bike, but I did a lot of other things,” he said.
“I’m still not feeling really good. I had some infection with my elbow and also some problems with my tooth so it’s quite a lot of things now.”
Nonetheless, Roglic remains fixed on title tilt in the September 30 elite men’s road race that he’ll enter as a favourite.
“I would not complain if I got a medal for sure, but the main thing now is to prepare myself as good as possible and then we’ll see what we get in the end,” he said. “I’ve seen the course and it’s a really hard one. I think a big challenge.”
Slovenia is one of 10 nations that has qualified a full quota of eight riders for the 258.5km race, which covers 4,670m of climbing in Innsbruck, Austria.
“I think we have this year a nice, strong team. All the guys, they are really good. I’m pleased and happy to be racing with them,” Roglic said.
The Tour of Romandie champion has shown hints of form at the Tour of Britain, finishing with an elite group of chasers that came in just two seconds behind Stage 2 winner Cameron Meyer (Mitchelton-Scott) on Monday.
The eight-stage race across Wales and England was, for Roglic, a more appealing option compared to the Vuelta a Espana, which the likes of Richie Porte (BMC Racing), reigning world champion Peter Sagan (Bora-hansgrohe), Simon and Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) have chosen to prime themselves at.
“It’s just to get myself into shape with no stress, and I enjoy racing here,” Roglic said.
“I’ve never done the Vuelta before so it’s hard to comment about it, but this one is not too long, [and a] really hard stage race so I think it’s perfect for preparation.”
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