Tour de France runner-up and Olympic bronze medallist Chris Froome has told Cycling News HD that he believes Team Sky can follow up their incredible 2012 with even greater success next season – including a Giro d’Italia and Tour de France double.
With current Tour champion Bradley Wiggins looking to target the Italian race next year, potentially opening the door for Froome to lead at the Tour, the Kenyan-born rider believes the squad can support both ambitions.
“We do have a lot of strength in numbers,” he said, “so we’ll definitely be able to do a good job at it. Maybe one team would have to be stronger than the other as to have two complete line-ups would mean having 18 riders, if they had different riders on each team. It’s a lot to ask, but I wouldn’t say it’s impossible.”
Asked if he was confident of leading Sky into next year’s more mountainous Tour, Froome said: ”I think that’s the way it’s looking at the moment. Bradley has announced that he wants to focus on the Giro. I think that would mean that I can focus on the Tour. It hasn’t been 100 percent confirmed, but that is how things are shaping up.”
As for whether he can expect similar support from Wiggins at the 100th edition of the Tour to that which he leant the seven-time Olympic medallist this year, Froome was open-minded:
”He and the team will have to assess how he is after the Giro. It is hard to say beforehand how a rider will come out of a grand tour. I found this year, with the Vuelta, that trying to do two grand tours in quick succession was a hard task. I found I wasn’t in 100 percent condition for the second of them. It is a call that Brad is going to have to make next year, because if we go there with the goal of winning yellow again then we are going to have to be at our absolute best.”
One man who does think Froome has a great shot at yellow is the man who would be his chief rival, Alberto Contador. The Spaniard has identified Froome as the man he most fears in 2013. ”That’s definitely a compliment coming from him,” said Froome. “He is so established and he’s won so many grand tours already, I think he is definitely the guy to beat in next year’s Tour.”
Cycling News HD
The full interview with Chris Froome appears in issue 29 of our digital magazine Cycling News HD, out now for £1.49 (US$1.99), and is just one example of what you can find inside.
Elsewhere in the issue we continue our review of the year with the season’s biggest race, the Tour de France, with in-depth analysis and stunning photography of the key moments over the three weeks. And Peter Sagan, who dominated the green jersey competition, talks exclusively about his best season to date and gives us an insight into his famous celebrations.
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With over 50 pages packed with new and original content every Wednesday, alongside all the latest reports and results, Cycling News HD is the best way to enjoy a roadside seat at all the season’s biggest and best races.
