Collarbone fracture for Chris Froome after UAE Tour crash

Over the past years of his career, Chris Froome's career was largely marked by the brutal crash that took him out of competition in 2019. He never again managed to return to the level he once had in the 2010's, but he has largely managed to avoid big injuries since. The veteran did not have his best day today however, as a fall took him out of the UAE Tour and he is now left with an injury to heal.

Froome had a crash last spring in which he fractured a scaphoid during Tirreno-Adriatico, which then saw him out of competition for a few months. The same could potentially happen now, as at a key moment of the spring, Froome will require some weeks to recover from a confirmed collarbone fracture. The Briton fell with 167 kilometers to go when the peloton reached an elevated road divider, and alongside Froome two more riders withdrew from the race due to it.

"Chris Froome was forced to abandon the UAE Tour following a crash during the final stage," Israel - Premier Tech wrote in a statement, before sharing details of the injury. "A CT scan has confirmed a distal non-displaced fracture of his right clavicle (collarbone). Chris will be assessed tomorrow by an orthopaedic surgeon in Dubai to determine whether surgery will be require to stabilize the fracture".

Froome had started his season this year in the UAE, instead of a more traditional European start. Whilst the race usually provides a warmer and more relaxed atmosphere with less technical roads, the amount of riders who crashed out during the week could be counted by the dozens and this included other high-level names. In this crash alone, he was joined by Arvid de Kleijn and Visma's under-23 World Champion Niklas Behrens. On the same day, INEOS' Carlos Rodríguez had to abandon the race; whilst the likes of Fernando Gaviria, Dylan Groenewegen and Juan Sebastián Molano all had crashes end their race.