"My challenge is to try to race in a Grand Tour again" - Chris Froome sets out plans for final year of Israel - Premier Tech contract
Cycling
The road cycling season is now over. It's now time for the typical end-of-year Criteriums. At the one in Saitama, Chris Froome was present and spoke in depth to Marca, including about his plans for what could be his final season in the peloton.
The Israel - Premier Tech rider will face the last season of his current Israel - Premier Tech contract in 2025. He will turn 40 in May, so professional retirement after the end of next year is a strong possibility. However, after failing to compete in the last two editions of the Tour de France, the 4 time champion (2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017), Froome dreams of going one last time at least for a stage win.
"I don't know yet what my calendar will be for next year," the experienced Brit says. "We'll see in the preseason. I don't know what my plans will be, but my challenge is to try to race in a Grand Tour again. I don't see it as crazy."
What is clear is that, despite being one of the great veterans of the peloton, every time Froome gets on the bike he still does it with the same enthusiasm as from day one. We'll have to see if Israel - Premier Tech grants him the chance to return to the Tour de France, or even any of the three Grand Tours, given the fact that he hasn't raced one since the 2022 Vuelta a Espana.
This isn't the first time lately that Froome has outlined intentions for a final Tour de France either. Speaking in a press release by the Saitama Criterium, the modern day Grand Tour legend again insisted he could play an important role in 2025. "I didn't make the cut for the last two, but it's not far-fetched to think that, if I give it my all, I can still earn a spot on the team and play my part — hunting for a stage win, maybe, or working for my teammate Derek Gee, for example," Froome said.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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"Froome vuelve a subir al podio en el Tour de Francia de Japón" El ciclista británico Chris Froome del Israel-Premier a sus (39 años), recibió este sábado el premio honorífico de la valentía en el Criterium de Saitama, en el pais del Sol naciente. "Felicitaciones".🤩✨😊👏
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