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Froome's dream deferred

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Nairo Quintana Picture: David S Bustamante /         Soccrates / Getty Images
Nairo Quintana Picture: David S Bustamante / Soccrates / Getty Images

Asplit-second crash and Chris Froome’s dream of joining the elite five-time Tour de France winners’ club has been deferred for another year.

The Kenya-born cyclist, riding for Team Ineos (formerly Team Sky) is lying in ICU in a French hospital following a horrific crash during a recon stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné last week. Froome was blown off his bike and into a wall by a sudden gust of wind.

Data from his bike show he was travelling at 54km/h when he was slammed into the wall.

According to his team doctor, Richard Usher, Froome suffered multiple serious injuries, including a broken femur, hip, elbow and ribs.

“First things first, the surgery was a success. The operation, which lasted for six hours, went very well. Chris woke up and was reviewed by the intensive care consultants and the orthopaedic specialist who operated on him, and they’re both very happy with his progress to date,” Usher said.

“Chris will remain in hospital for the next few days for observation, but he is already actively engaging in discussing his rehabilitation options, which is very encouraging.”

He apparently asked his doctor how soon he could get back on a bike.

Froome had been racing in the Dauphiné as part of his preparation for taking on the Tour de France next month, at which he was going to ride for a fifth win and join Miguel Induráin, Jacques Anquetil, Bernard Hinault and Eddy Merckx in the record books.

He already has six grand Tour wins under his belt – four Tour de France victories, one at the Giro d’Italia and one at the Vuelta a España.

His absence from this year’s Tour de France has thrown the field wide open.

Geraint Thomas, last year’s winner (also team Ineos) will be back to defend his title next to Ineos rising star Egan Bernal. Other contenders include Movistar’s Nairo Quintana and Alejandro Valverde, Trek Segafredo’s Richie Porte, Adam Yates from Mitchelton-Scott and Thibaut Pinot from Groupama FDJ.

Less likely to be there is last year’s second place winner Tom Dumoulin as he is still battling the knee injury that he suffered earlier in the year.

Despite this rather illustrious field, many cycling commentators feel that Froome’s absence will have a huge effect on the biggest cycling race in the world.

The Guardian’s William Fotheringham perhaps sums it up the best: “A Tour without Froome will resemble the 1983 race, when Bernard Hinault was ruled out by tendinitis, or the 1976 race, when Eddy Merckx was sidelined by a saddle boil, or 1997, when Miguel Induráin was absent for the first time in a dozen years. A Tour without Froome for the first time since 2012 will be different. Not better, not worse, just different.”

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