"Our first diagnosis is inflammation of the left quadriceps tendon due to probable overload or old injury," said Kazakh team doctor Dr. Emilio Magni.
"In the next few days, he will undergo a thorough medical examination to find the exact cause of the injury in order to start the appropriate treatment," added the doctor.
The Colombian climber had been suffering for several days, even before the start of the Giro last Friday in Budapest.
"We tried to do our best to solve this problem during the first stages in Budapest and during the rest day, but it didn't work," admitted Dr Magni.
This abandonment is the fourth following the Colombian in the big tours, since his sixth place in the Tour de France 2020 embellished with a prestigious success in the stage of the Col de la Loze (Savoie).
"It's really sad to finish the Giro this way after only four days because of an injury," reacted Miguel Angel Lopez.
"The team staff did everything they could to help me recover during those days but it was impossible in racing conditions."
"I was hoping it would get better but today I just couldn't press the pedals normally because of the pain in my thigh," explained the Colombian who had already had to abandon the Giro in Sicily during the 2020 edition, after a fall in the inaugural time trial in Palermo.
© 2022 AFP