Kaden Hopkins has just a few days to recover before his biggest race of the season so far after pulling out of the final stage of the Boucle de l'Artois on Sunday.

Bermudian cyclist Hopkins was involved in a huge crash on the first stage of the three-stage race in France but bravely continued to finish seventeenth and 32nd on stage two, which both took place on Saturday.

However, Hopkins was still feeling the effects of the crash on the final stage on Sunday and was forced to withdraw midway through.

“I had a hard crash on the first stage of the race so I wasn’t on a great day,” Hopkins said.

“I just helped my team-mates as much as possible but once I was out of contention I decided to pull out.”

Hopkins’s recovery time will need to be short as the first big target of the year takes place this week with the gruelling Circuit des Ardennes, which starts on Thursday.

A true test, the four stages over four days will feature 150 cyclists competing over a total distance of 642.2 kilometres, with 26 climbs testing their endurance to the limit, which is why Hopkins knows he will have to be on his A game to compete.

“This is my first really big goal of the season,” Hopkins said. “I want to make sure I am recovered from my crash by then.”