Romain Bardet has confirmed that he will participate in the Tour de France, which will start in Copenhagen on July 1. Illness forced the DSM rider to retire from last month’s Giro d’Italia on Stage 13 when he was in fourth place overall.

“Really thrilled to announce that I will be lining up at @LeTour with @TeamDSM,” Bardet announced on social media Monday morning. “I can’t wait to be at the Grand Départ in Copenhagen in a few weeks.”

Bardet skipped the Tour in his first season at DSM in 2021, preferring to line up at the Giro, where he finished seventh overall, and the Vuelta a España, where he took the summit stage victory by Pico Villercas.

At the start of 2022, Bardet had signaled his intention to race two Grand Tours again, although he declined to confirm that a return to the Tour de France was on the cards.

The Frenchman arrived at the Giro as one of the favorites for overall victory after winning the Tour of the Alps, and he impressed in the first two weeks, especially on the summit finish atop the Blockhaus. He looked like a potential Giro winner at the time, but was forced out of the race on Stage 13 to Cuneo due to stomach issues.

Bardet’s last Tour appearance came with AG2R in 2020, when he retired after suffering a concussion in a serious crash on stage 13. He had started that stage in fourth place overall and in hoping to replicate his 2016 and 2017 podiums.