Briton Chris Froome has cemented his status as one of the greatest Tour de France riders, securing his third title after a three-week rocky ride.
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Froome made a point of linking arms with his support riders and the 31-year-old, who finished second overall after helping Bradley Wiggins win the Tour in 2012, thanked Team Sky’s domestiques for their sacrifice.
Paris: Chris Froome rode a wave of hostility to his first two Tour de France wins, but had an easier time out of the saddle on his way to a third, winning respect if not love from the tough French crowds.
Froome will tackle the road race alongside Geraint Thomas, Ian Stannard, Adam Yates and Steve Cummings in the British team, with Cummings a late replacement for Peter Kennaugh and a potential wildcard for the team given his talent at attacking from breakaways.
Froome has already vowed he will try for more victories on the Tour, having joined Belgian Philippe Thys, American Greg LeMond and France’s Louison Bobet as triple winners.
“I hope I can be back next year to fight for it again”.
“I didn’t find it that hard”, Wiggins said of the switch.
A remarkable turn of events on Mont Ventoux during stage 14 saw Froome abandon his damaged bike and run towards the finish line after he and a number of other riders collided with a broadcaster’s motorbike that stopped suddenly.
Next up for Thomas is a little break before the Olympics where he will be supporting Froome in his bid to add a Gold medal to his palmares in Rio in a couple of weeks.
Froome had been able to enjoy a glass of champagne and a sip of beer on the 113km stage from Chantilly, won on the Champs-Elysees by Andre Greipel, before he met his wife Michelle and baby boy Kellan just after the finish line and the celebrations began in earnest.
“Being a one-day race, and with such small teams of five riders per nation for the bigger nations”.
Froome also recognised that his use of multiple surprise attacks in this year’s race, which netted the lead on stage seven and severely dented his rivals’ morale, had had an important effect on his Tour racing style.
It was an 11th stage win at the Tour for Greipel.
And Merckx, who achieved the last of his victories in 1974, expects the Froome-Sky dominance to continue.
Tony Martin was forced to retire from the race on the final stage with a knee injury.
He again claimed victory at the stage 18 mountain time trial from Sallanches to Megève.
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The flamboyant Slovak rider, who does not have the climbing qualities to compete for the general classification, won three stages and clinched the best sprinter’s green jersey for the fifth consecutive time.
