“In theory it’s three months (of recovery) but since he rides at a very high level he needs a bit more time,” Pedro Cavadas, who led the surgery on Degenkolb, was quoted as saying by Spanish news agency EFE. Milan-San Remo is due to be held on March 19 and Paris-Roubaix on April 10.

(Reporting by Julien Pretot, editing by Ed Osmond)