Ben O'Connor has been ruled out of the Paris-Nice stage 4 time trial due to the flu; AG2R Citroen's O'Connor was in 11th place overall, 39 seconds behind race leader Christophe Laporte (Jumbo Visma).

O'Connor, who finished fourth overall in last year's Tour de France, began his 2022 campaign with a seventh-place finish in Ruta del Sol.

"Ben O'Connor has a fever and his condition will not allow him to continue in a grueling event like Paris-Nice," AG2R Citroën manager Vincent Lavenu said in a statement released by the team on Wednesday.

"After discussions with himself and the team's medical manager, Dr. Fabrice Descombes, we have decided to withdraw him from the race. This is of course a blow as Ben has been doing well since the beginning of the race and had specific ambitions to be in the overall class."

In O'Connor's absence, AG2R Citroën's attention will turn to Aurelien Pare-Pantl, who finished 9th overall in the race a year ago.

"With Aurelien Pare-Pantre and Clément Champoussin, the team still has the assets it needs to continue its success in Paris-Nice," Lavigne said.

O'Connor's next race schedule will likely be the Volta a Catalunya, which begins on March 21.