Andy Schleck of Team RadioShack-Nissan-Trek will miss this year's Tour de France due to a broken pelvis sustained in the Criterium du Dauphine.
The Luxembourger was one of the favourites for this year's race along with Bradley Wiggins of Team Sky.
The 27-year-old sustained the injury on 7th June during a time trial - the fourth stage of the Criterium.
Schleck finished second on the podium in last year's Tour de France, and was promoted to winner of the 2010 race after Alberto Contador was found guilty of a doping violation.
"I can promise you one thing: I'm 27 and I have a lot of years in front of me," Schleck said at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
"Of course it's hard. But what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and I believe I will come back stronger. I haven't spoken my last word."
Schleck's doctor expects the injury will take between 4-6 weeks to heal, and Schleck himself said he would now make the Vuelta a Espana in September a priority.
"I don't know if I would stand in yellow in Paris, but I was going there to try and achieve that goal," he added. "If it's Wiggins, or my brother Frank, who wins the Tour, they're lucky because I'm not standing there."
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