The year 2026 is not starting well for Evita Muzic. The Jurassienne based in Isère (at Varces-Allières-et-Risset), who returned to competition in February on the Tour de la Communauté de Valence (24th, on the team alongside Demi Vollering, the winner), has not raced since then.
Initially scheduled to compete in the Trofeo Alfredo Binda this Sunday, March 15 in Italy, she will not be starting after having already withdrawn from the Tour of Estrémadure in Spain at the beginning of March.
“I caught a respiratory virus in February, the VRS, which normally affects children,” explains the 26-year-old climber. “I was really unwell, I had to take a whole week off, I was knocked out on the couch. I’ve been gradually getting back since, but there was a slight relapse. Today, I’m feeling better but I’m not at 100%, I haven’t been able to do any high-intensity training for over two weeks. That’s why it didn’t make sense to go to Binda in these conditions.”
“Arrive in good shape for the month of May”
Instead of pinning on a race number, Evita Muzic will leave for a high-altitude training camp during the weekend of Milan-San Remo (March 21) to prepare for the rest of her season. “My goal is to arrive in good shape in May, which will be the main objective of the year,” says the fourth-place finisher in the 2024 Tour de France.
She will notably return to the roads of the Tour of Spain (May 3-5), where she claimed a stage victory in 2024 (5th overall) and will share the leadership of the FDJ United-Suez team with Juliette Berthet. She will then continue with the Tour of the Basque Country (Itzulia, May 15-17), the Durango classic (May 19), and the Tour of Burgos (May 21-24).
Before that, the 2021 French champion (who would like to reclaim her tricolor jersey in June, five years later, “not far from home” in La Tour-du-Pin) will resume competition at the Flèche Brabançonne (April 17) before taking part in the Grand Prix de Chambéry (April 19) and the Ardennes classics (Fleche Wallonne on April 22 and Liège-Bastogne-Liège on April 26).
In August, Evita Muzic is expected to participate in the Tour de France as she did last year, alongside her Dutch leader Demi Vollering, with the obvious goal of winning after being defeated by Pauline Ferrand-Prévot in 2025.
