Bauke Mollema has had many problems since his heavy crash in the Tour of the Basque Country. His hands are bruised, making it hard for him to stand in the pedal suring training.

"I have managed to ride for half an hour but that is not easy. On Thursday I hope to be able to do a long workout, but I am optimistic that I will get tp the Amstel Gold Race in reasonable condition," he told De Telegraaf.

Last Friday Mollema thought he had to skip the Ardennes classics. "I crashed at more than 60km/h. The next day I had so much pain that I went to the the hospital again to check that there was no fracture. Luckily that was not the case. Last Sunday I was not able to train yet. However, the condition cannot disappear and I still have five days to the Gold Race."