Froome with a phew
BRIT TO CLAIM THIRD SUCCESS
CHRIS FROOME is set to win the 2016 Tour de France after Spaniard Jon Izaguirre won stage 20 to Morzine.
Team Sky’s Froome safely negotiated the treacherous, wet descent off the Col de Joux Plane alongside his rivals to lead by four minutes and five seconds over Frenchman Romain Bardet ahead of today’s traditional parade into Paris.
Much of the penultimate 146.5km stage from Megeve was played out in heavy rain but Froome, who crashed on Friday’s stage to Saint-Gervais Mont Blanc, was able to avoid late drama after dominating this Tour.
Froome will become only the eighth man, not including the disgraced Lance Armstrong, to win three or more Tours after his victories in 2013 and 2015 – and is the first to defend the Tour title since Miguel Indurain in 1995.
He will join Philippe Thys, Louison Bobet and Greg LeMond on three titles, and will now have his eyes set on five-time winners Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, Jacques Anquetil and Indurain.
Izaguirre was the last survivor of what had been a 37-man breakaway earlier in the day, racing clear of Vincenzo Nibali and Jarlinson Pantano on the sodden descent to take his first Tour de France stage win.
Behind, there was little drama with none of Froome’s main rivals prepared to risk crashing in the slippery conditions.
The contenders came home more than four minutes after Izaguirre, with Froome allowing half a smile as he celebrated with his team-mates on the approach to the line.
The Briton has looked a cut above all of his rivals since early in the second week of this Tour but Friday’s crash had been a reminder that nothing was won yet.
He began the day sporting bandages on his knee and elbow from that spill, and would not have relaxed for a moment knowing he had to face the long, technical descent into Morzine before any celebrations could begin. The descent has a nasty reputation in any conditions but the rain perhaps helped Froome in discouraging those near him from attempting an attack. Nairo Quintana is set for third place, four minutes and 21 seconds behind Froome. It will be the Colombian’s third podium finish after he finished second to Froome in 2013 and 2015. Brit Adam Yates, 23, is fourth and safe in the white jersey as the best young rider. Froome’s win is the fourth by a British rider in the past five editions, following on from Sir Bradley Wiggins being the first Brit to win the Tour in 2012.