"I still hope to ride Tour or Vuelta" - Chris Froome hopes to get a 40th birthday present from his team

The best Grand Tour rider of the 2010s celebrated his 40th birthday on Tuesday. And apparently, he's still riding bikes too! Happy birthday, Chris Froome!

When Israel - Premier Tech picked up the pieces of Chris Froome on a five-year contract in 2021, pretty much everyone was shaking their heads. Of course, the team owner Sylvan Adams saw the added value of having four-time Tour champion among their ranks, especially if he was to ever reach at least close to his level.

However the damage done in his 2019 accident were simply too severe to completely overcome and so the highlight of Froome's period in the Israeli team will most likely remain his surge at the 2022 Tour de France when he finished third in an epic stage with finish on L'Alpe d'Huez.

Although the Brit made his intention clear that he'd like to go for one more season, the chances that any team would be interested in his services is quite low. Therefore his best chance to ever ride a Grand Tour again is to make the cut and get selected to ride either the Tour of Vuelta in Israel - Premier Tech colours this year.

"I still hope to ride the Tour or the Vuelta. I feel good. There's always work to be done and it was a big setback with my collarbone. It really brought me back to square one, but shit happens. Unfortunately, it happens more and more often in the peloton."