It doesn't come as a surprise, but it comes as a confirmation. Chris Froome will not race for Israel - Premier Tech (which will be renamed) in 2026. The team has confirmed it this Friday afternoon in a post on Instagram where they have said goodbye to their departing riders after a season that had success but also a lot of difficulties.
"The 2026 season is around the corner and a new chapter awaits! With preparations for the upcoming season in full swing, we’ll be going offline for a short while from tomorrow, Saturday 15 November, before we return to reveal the team’s new name and identity, the post said. According to a report from Gazzetta dello Sport's Ciro Scognamiglio, the team is likely to take on a Swiss license, which should mean the entry of a Swiss title sponsor too. Despite the lack of a full guarantee at this point in time, there seems to be safety for the riders - in a winter that sees several teams disappear or merge together.
"Stay tuned! Before we sign off, we want to take the chance to thank our departing staff for all of their hard work and, of course, the departing riders," the team added, naming out one rider who has confirmed retirement (Michael Woods), three who have signed contracts with different teams and... Chris Froome.
"Pascal Ackermann, Chris Froome, Riley Pickrell, Matthew Riccitello, Michael Schwarzmann, and Mike Woods. Thanks for the memories over the last years, we look forward to seeing you in the peloton next year or wherever the next chapter takes you!" This now means that Froome is officially without a contract for the upcoming season, and chances this is how it will remain. At 40 years of age and without any meaningful performance since the 2022 season, the four-time Tour de France winner is not likely to find a new contract in the sport.
Froome has signed a five-year contract with Israel - Premier Tech, but over the last few seasons he has not raced often, and his last Grand Tour was the 2022 Vuelta a España. The situation was difficult, but a brutal set of injuries suffered only a few months ago ended his season and have added yet another obstacle for the Briton. His last and likely final race was the 2025 Tour de Pologne.
Chris Froome at the 2025 Tour de Suisse. @Sirotti
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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- JV is really slighting himself with not doing the 1 dayers.. 🤷
leedorney02-11-2026 - Watch the interview on youtube. I don't speak French. I do speak English and Spanish and you can hear it in his voice. Years ago LeMond had real personal problems I imagine in no small part because of Armstrong. then Armstrong goes round "full blast" re: LeMond having drinking and drug problems. The same way Andreu was expelled from mainstream cycling so was LeMond. On the positive side the clips of the ride and chatting with old teammates and was good. To seemed like a fun day and experience and good reason brush up his French.atom02-11-2026
- and another no-news article around the ‚2 tokyo jogging rounds‘ headline, this time spiced with some days old ‚news‘ that the LA and japan vacation trips come during or after the tdf route release. i am getting more and more annoyed by this time-stealing no-news crap. but who am i to complain? nobody forces me to come back for more ‚news‘ day after day …Ketterechts02-11-2026
- It would likely be a very steep section of 4.1 km, not changing the average gradient considerably, with the climb remaining 10.1 km at 11.8%. It would reach 20% on the gravel. It would start 1.6 km in, and finish with 4.2 km left to climb (before the short final descent)
Rafionain-Glas02-11-2026 - Welcome to the off-season.
santiagobenites02-11-2026 - guillaume martin in this list is quite a surprise as a gc rider.Ketterechts02-11-2026
- Who cares what Bruyneel thinks. He and his best mate Lance, the biggest fraud in the history of sport, have no place commenting on anything but how to lie and cheat!whit2pet02-11-2026
- Eeesh!Lozza02-11-2026
- bravo! a rider likes jonas needs motivation and he needs to believe in being able to reach goals. he - like anybody else in the world - doesn't believe that he can win the tdf with pogi present. and what's it worth for when pogi is not there? second class victory only. he has checked all three grand tours, so what is left if not retire? the classics! go for it, jonas!Ketterechts02-11-2026
- i am sure that under the pretext of medical examination a lot worse has happened when they were under.abstractengineer02-11-2026
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