Tour winner Froome confirms Vuelta presence
Xinhua, August 11, 2015 Adjust font size:
The winner of this summer' s Tour de France, Chris Froome, has confirmed he will ride in the Tour of Spain (Vuelta de Espana), which begins on August 22 in the town of Puerto Banus.
Froome, who rides for the Sky team, could well be accompanied by Welsh rider Geraint Thomas, who offered him excellent support in the Tour, before running out of steam on the penultimate mountain stage.
It will not be the first time Froome has ridden the three-week long, Vuelta, which is the last grand tour of the year, and he finished second in the 2011 and 2014 editions of the race.
Last season saw him finish behind local favorite, Alberto Contador, but Contador is unlikely to ride this year' s Vuelta after riding in the Giro de Italia and the Tour, when he failed to make a podium finish.
One rider who will compete with Froome is the Colombian climber, Nairo Quintana who will count on the support of the powerful Movistar team, who will be riding on home soil.
It will be interesting to see whether Froome rides the Vuelta to win or whether it will form part of his preparations ahead of the World Championships next year when he will look to win a third Tour de France. Endi