Chris Froome chasing place in history as rivals look for weakness

It is said there is no such thing as bad publicity, but the Tour de France organisers, Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), would beg to differ. Last Sunday the French newspaper Le Monde reported that those organisers would block Chris Froome from the race. Their reasoning? The damage to the Tour's image that his participation could bring.

One day later ASO was forced to backtrack on this position when Froome, a four-time winner of the race, was dramatically and unexpectedly cleared by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and cycling’s governing body, the UCI.

The whole kerfuffle originated from a urine sample he provided last September en route to winning the Vuelta a España. The analysis revealed levels of the anti-asthma drug Salbutamol that were far above the permitted maximum. The case rumbled on for months, but earlier this week WADA decided to drop the matter.

The agency and the UCI have been under pressure since then to publish the reasoned decision, a full breakdown of the ruling which would make clear the reasons why the rider was cleared. Whether or not that happens remains to be seen. In the meantime,Froome will line out in the Tour de France on Saturday aiming to join the previous record holders in the event.

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Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain have each won five editions of the race; Froome triumphed in 2013, 2015, 2016 and again last year, and has the opportunity to join the other four if he wears yellow into Paris on July 29th.

That’s a huge motivation, but so too is another opportunity: were Froome to triumph he would be extending the most successful sequence of his career. He took last year’s Tour and the 2017 Vuelta a España; this year he won the Giro d’Italia.

Success in this year’s Tour would mark victory in four consecutively-held Grand Tours. The only other rider to do this was Merckx way back in 1972/1973.

Opponents

Froome’s run of results will likely intimidate some of his opponents but, equally, the most optimistic of them can take encouragement from it. After all, sustained success at this level is extraordinarily rare. In 1998, Marco Pantani won both the Giro and the Tour in the same season; since then many have tried and failed to do the double.

An example of this can be seen with Nairo Quintana, a talented Colombian climber regarded as one of the main contenders this year. He went all out for Giro success in 2017 but came up 31 seconds short behind Tom Dumoulin, taking second. He went on to compete in the Tour but this proved far less successful than his previous participations, netting only 12th.

Quintana admitted afterwards that trying for success in the two races was too difficult. This conclusion synced with what many others have said in recent years. Instead this year he has concentrated everything on the Tour de France. He has built steadily towards peaking in July, and if that approach does indeed work he could improve on the second overall he achieved in 2013 and 2015.

Meanwhile, Froome must wait and see if the same fatigue will hit him after riding the Italian event.

Aside from Quintana, the Movistar team also includes two other overall contenders: Mikel Landa, who finished fourth overall last year despite riding in support of Froome, and the 2015 podium-finisher Alejandro Valverde. Providing personal ambition doesn’t get the better of the trio, providing co-operation prevails over opportunism, this hydra-like approach could pay off.

Challenges

This year’s route totals 3,351km, and will present riders with a range of challenges. These include a number of flat early stages suiting sprinters but also posing the risk of splits due to high winds, as well as a 35.5km team time trial on day three. Other tests will be the uphill finish of Mûr de Bretagne on Stage Six plus a cobblestone-heavy Stage Nine to Roubaix.

After that the big mountains will rear up, including summit finishes at La Rosière-Montvalezan on Stage 11, at the famous climb of Alpe d’Huez on Stage 12, and atop the Col de Portet on Stage 17. The latter stage is a mere 65km in length and will begin with grid-style positioning of riders, setting things up for a short, sharp and very intense battle.

Other mountain stages end in high-speed descents, thus examining the downhill skills of riders and perhaps rewarding those willing to take risks. Further key moments will be the inclusion of gravel roads on Stage 10 plus a 31km time trial on the penultimate day.

That race against the clock will likely suit Froome, but only if he is still strong after his earlier Giro d’Italia participation. With the exception of Dumoulin, who also did the Giro, Froome’s rivals should all have the benefit of freshness. They will hope that they can exploit this to build a buffer early on and ensure that Froome’s bid at a fifth Tour win comes up short.

The organisers too may be wishing for this. Although Froome has been cleared by WADA and the UCI, although the Salbutamol issue has been put to rest, his and Team Sky’s dominance continues to be vigorously debated by observers of the sport. Whether that’s fair or not, a sizeable number will be hoping for a new face atop the podium in Paris on July 29th.

FOUR CHALLENGERS TO WATCH

We've mentioned Nairo Quintana and his Movistar teammates elsewhere, as well as Ireland's Dan Martin. Here are four others who will seek to deny Froome a record-equalling fifth Tour victory.

Rigoberto Uran (EF Education First-Drapac) took second overall last year and is reportedly in better form heading into the 2018 edition. The Colombian is a strong climber and capable time trialist yet, notwithstanding the ability that earned him runner-up slots in the Tour and Giro d'Italia, is yet to take overall stage race victory as a professional rider.

Romain Bardet (Ag2r La Mondiale) is French cycling's best hope to end a 33-year drought. The host nation hasn't won the race since Bernard Hinault did so way back in 1985, and Bardet, a strong climber and descender with a good tactical instinct, has already underlined his potential. After taking second in 2016 and third overall last year, he is dreaming big.

Richie Porte (BMC Racing Team) has long been seen as a potential Tour champion. He is a former teammate of Froome and so has a clearer picture of the Briton's strengths and weaknesses than many riders. He recently won the Tour de Suisse, and said afterwards that he believed he had further room for improvement in the build-up to the Tour. Providing he has built on that form, he could go all the way.

Besides Froome, Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida) is the only other past winner on this year's startlist. The Italian triumphed in 2014 and has built his whole year around the Tour, suggesting to reporters that this season may well be his last chance to win the event again.