Max Poole (Team Picnic PostNL) could return to racing in October after recurring Epstein-Barr virus symptoms restricted him to six race days this season.
The British 23-year-old rider is having to rebuild his fitness after yet another setback in early July, the team’s sports director Matt Winston told WielerFlits. Any races he manages at the end of this season would be part of his recovery towards 2027, with no expectation that he will return to racing form this year.
Poole and the team hope he can ride a few races late in the season, potentially in October, but “that is still very uncertain”, Winston said. “If we can get him racing again, that in itself is already a success,” he said. If the attempt does not work, the team will not force it.
Poole began building up over the winter but did not feel right in his opening races. He finished 56th at the Figueira Champions Classic and 54th overall at the Volta ao Algarve, which ended on February 22. He has not raced since.
“Our team doctors, as well as other experts in this field, say no timeline can be attached to it,” Winston said, translated from Dutch. He likened the stop-start rebuilding to “two steps forward, one step back”. Poole began rebuilding again after another setback in early July.
Illness has interrupted two seasons
Picnic PostNL announced Poole’s diagnosis of Epstein-Barr virus with glandular fever on August 20, 2025. The team said he had stopped responding positively to training during his Vuelta a España preparation, then deteriorated at the Tour de Pologne and withdrew for medical investigation. He subsequently missed the Vuelta.
“I’m pretty relieved to now understand the root of the problem as it means that I can start to focus on recovery and getting my health back on track,” Poole said in that announcement.
Picnic PostNL were hoping that Poole could be a key man in their quest for UCI points after his superb 2024 season that saw him take the overall title and a stage win at the Tour de Langkawi, finish runner-up at the Vuelta a Burgos and claim multiple stage podiums at La Vuelta, including second place on stage 12.
Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a common virus in the herpesvirus family. It can cause infectious mononucleosis, also known as glandular fever, and some people experience fatigue for weeks or months.
Mark Cavendish took an indefinite break from racing in August 2018 because of EBV. Chloé Dygert (Canyon//SRAM) was recovering from the virus in March 2022. Stefan Küng (Tudor Pro Cycling Team) had his preparations for 2016 interrupted by an EBV diagnosis in December 2015.
Winston said that it would be up to Poole to decide when he was ready to make his return to racing with a focus on how he feels in himself. As of yet, no races have been pencilled into his schedule for October.
