Peter Sagan did not start the Tirreno-Adriatico stage 3 after feeling ill on Wednesday morning.

Slovakian-born Peter Sagan reportedly fell ill after Tuesday's second stage, in which he finished fourth in the 219-km race. On Wednesday morning, the former world champion suffered a bout of vomiting.

Steven Farrand, Cycling News' local Italian reporter, confirmed that Sagan was suffering from a fever in addition to stomach problems.

The illness is the latest setback for Sagan, who got off to an inauspicious start during his tenure with Total Energies; he developed COVID-19 for the second time in early January, which hampered his early season training, and last month Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuhle Brussel Kuhln, he was unable to keep up the pace.

Sagan had been suffering from a sore throat and fever last week, which tested negative for COVID-19. It is unclear if his current illness is a continuation of that or a new infection.

The 32-year-old will bounce back with a fourth-place finish on Tuesday and turn his attention to his first big goals of the season, Milan-San Remo in 10 days and Milan-Torino (March 16).

However, missing the remaining Tirreno-Adriatico means missing valuable race preparation days for La Classissima.

Sagan competed in Sovicile on Tuesday after the lead group of Total Energies jumped to the front in the last few kilometers of the stage.

He led after initiating a sprint, but stalled in the dash to the finish and was passed by eventual winner Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Phoenix) in the final meters; in second place was Olaf Couey (Jumbo-Visma) and in third place was Kayden Groves ( Bike Exchange-Jayco) in third.

"What can I say ...... I could have done better, but I could have done worse," Sagan said after the finish.

"They were really strong, coming up behind me at speed and going over me.