Tour de France 2022: Enric Mas Nicolau drops out of Stage 19 after returning positive Covid-19 test

Enric Mas Nicolau has dropped out of Stage 19 of the Tour de France after returning positive Covid-19 test. The 27-year-old Movistar rider was leading the charge for his side, sitting in 11th place in the General Classification, 24 minutes behind leader Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma).

Ad/> He finished sixth in last year's Tour and fifth in 2020, but his best results have come in the Vuelta a Espana, where he has twice finished second. Tour de FranceTour de France Stage 19: Route map, how to watch as sprinters rewarded for Pyrenees slog6 HOURS AGO But the man once tipped as the next Alberto Contador will now miss out on Stage 19's flat 188.3km ride from Castelnau-Magnoac to Cahors as well as the remaining two stages.

Tour de France Stage 19 LIVE! Lopez suspended amid links to drug trafficking probe The Tour de France has been plagued by a wave of Covid-19 cases. Last week, Magnus Cort (EF Education–EasyPost) and Simon Clarke (Israel-Premier Tech) withdrew from the race after testing positive.

Four-time winner Chris Froome (Israel Premier-Tech) also pulled out 24 hours earlier. — — - Stream the Tour de France live and on-demand on discovery+.

You can also watch all the action live on eurosport.co.uk. Tour de FranceOpinion: Indefatigable Van Aert must make Pogacar go green with envy15 HOURS AGO Cycling'This is just a stepping stone' — Froome backed for Tour return after untimely exit15 HOURS AGO