Garmin-Sharp has been forced to withdraw from the Tour Mediterranean following a theft from their race truck.

The team had 16 Cervelo R5 bicycles, 60 sets of wheels, tools and other equipment worth a total of €250,000 (£211,500) stolen on Friday night.

Sporting director for the team, Johnny Weltz, told reporters: "Everyone was so stressed. The riders were super-motivated for today. It was just a huge shock. This was not a small-boy thing. It was a very organised crime.

"It appears that where we had the truck parked was a kind of 'dark spot' on the surveillance cameras. The police are taking it very seriously. The whole truck was cleaned out. This is obviously a job of professional thieves.

"We did get the offer from other teams [to borrow bikes], but there is an issue with the pedals. Then you get a sore knee and that can cause other, bigger problems."

Britian's David Millar was among the cyclists affected by the theft.