Road closures for UAE Tour: Do you need to take a detour today?
All eyes on Froome as he returns to UAE Tour after devastating crash
Today will feel like the first day of school all over again for road cycling legend Chris Froome, who marks his return to competitive action from a careerthreatening accident with the UAE Tour that gets under way in the afternoon.
Some of the world’s top names in road cycling are in the UAE for the region’s only UCI World Tour event and Briton Froome was clearly the most sought after name at the pre-event press conference in Dubai last evening.
Eight riders were present, including riding greats Alejandro Valverde and Mark Cavendish and the up-and-coming Tadej Pogacar, but Froome’s return has been the talking point, it seems, of this second edition of the UAE Tour. It showed in the kind of media interest his presence drew with a peloton of media persons chasing him up and down the mixed zone for the spiel.
Froome crashed into a wall at 37mph in the French town of Roanne during a practice ride for the Criterium du Dauphine in June last year, an incident that left him with multiple broken bones, including a fractured neck, a fractured right femur, a broken hip and fractured ribs. The event threatened to cut short a career in which he had won the Tour de France four times, the Giro d’Italia and two Vuelta a Espana titles.
But after eight months out, he is back on the road again and taking aim at what would be a record-equalling fifth Tour de France title and the test starts with today’s first stage of the UAE Tour over 148km from
Froome crashed into a wall at 37mph in the French town of Roanne during a practice ride for the Criterium du Dauphine in June last year
The Pointe at Palm Jumeirah to Dubai Silicon Oasis. “I am extremely happy and excited to be here after the crash which forced me to be away for eight months. Now it seems like the first day back at school again,” Froome, 34, said.
“I hope I am at the right level to get through the race and am looking forward to racing again.”
Massive rehabilitation
The Team Ineos rider underwent massive rehabilitation to get himself physically and mentally ready to tackle the rigours of a sport. Froome admits making a return has been a difficult process. “After eight months out, it’s a great feeling to be starting [today]. I’m just taking it one week at a time,” Froome added.
“I’ve seen progressions all the time in terms of the strength and the power coming back — so it’s going to take me a while to get back to where I left off, but I’m extremely motivated. I feel fresh now after eight months off and there’s a lot to catch up with, but I’m really motivated for the season.”