Froomesday
WORLD OF SPORT TOUR FARCE Team Sky suffer new setback as puncture holds up Chris
IT wasn’t quite Dick Dastardly and Muttley chasing the Ant Hill Mob in the Alps but Chris Froome called it a scene from Wacky Races.
As Team Sky missed another chance to seize the Tour de France leader’s Yellow Jersey, he brushed off the “comedy of errors” over a wheel change that turned into a three-act drama.
And team principal Sir Dave Brailsford hit back at Sir Bradley Wiggins, who had branded him BY MIKE WALTERS “divisive” for hedging his bets over nominating Froome or Geraint Thomas as leader of the pack.
Brailsford said: “Divisive? On my Richter scale, that’s not bad – I’ve been called a lot worse!”
After a sobering first day in the mountains, Team Sky didn’t have much else to laugh about.
Belgium’s Greg van Avermaet extended his overall lead to 2min 22sec over Thomas, with defending champion Froome a further minute back in sixth place – but rising – in the general classification.
Normally, Team Sky change wheels faster than a KwikFit fitter but it was not their best day on the road.
Froome said: “I had a puncture on the first section, got a spare wheel from a team-mate (Jonathan Castroviejo) only to find out that was flat as well.
“So it was a bit Wacky Races out there, a comedy of errors going on, but thankfully it was still a long way from the finish so the race wasn’t too crazy.
“Nobody really showed their cards – everyone played it a little bit conservative, maybe thinking about the next two days, which are going to be hard as well.
“We were pretty happy to have numbers up front for the first big mountain day.”
Julian Alaphilippe broke clear in the last 20 miles to win his first stage on the Tour de France, and his first in this year’s race. 4.30: GHAYYAR Tight Lines Mon Beau 5.00: ROCK ON BERTIE Bollin Joan River 5.30: ISLAND SONG Different Journey Correggio Kenmare CHELMSFORD CITY Going: Standard 2.20: SACRED PATH Via Delle Volte Stranger Laughing 7.40: SHARP STYLE Penwood Tidal Surge