Four-time Tour de France champion Chris Froome has said that he’s keeping his eyes out for opportunities as the race hits the Alps and its second half following Monday’s rest day.
The Briton, racing his second Tour for Israel-Premier Tech, has suffered through some tough moments during the opening nine days of the race after breathing in dust on the cobbled stage 5 to Arenberg.
However, in a rest day interview he told of his ambition to make a breakaway later in the race and help his team battle for another stage win to go with Simon Clarke’s victory from the break on the cobbles.
“For me personally, I’m feeling better and better,” Froome said in a video released by Israel-Premier Tech on Monday. “Hoping to have a look around and stay awake for opportunities, really see what opportunities present themselves in the race and if the legs are good, I’m certainly going to go for it.
“This first period of the race has been tough. I’ve struggled a little bit with my health this last week, but I’m definitely feeling better getting to this first rest day. I feel especially after that cobbled stage it was just all in my chest coughing up dust for the next couple days.
“I’m certainly hoping the legs will be good going into these mountain stages coming up,” he added, noting that team leader Jakob Fuglsang is in good form as the race heads to the Alps.
“I think we could see a lot more of him,” Froome said. “The rest of us, we’re really trying to help them out and try and get them into the breaks in the right moments. Personally, I’d love to be in one of those moves with them and see how far we can get into the climbs and see if we can be up there fighting for a stage win.”
Fuglsang’s co-leader Woods has been in the wars already, getting caught in a crash on Sunday’s stage 9 to Châtel. The Canadian climber finished 131st on the day with cuts and road rash on his hip, elbow, leg, and back, but Froome said his teammate can bounce back from his hardship to affect the race.
“I think it was just one point there where the road turned and a bunch of guys just went flying straight over a central reservation in the road and Woodsy went down in that and he went down pretty hard,” Froome said of Woods’ crash.
“He got through yesterday, he finished the stage. There are really not many sports in the world where you see people carrying on and going to the finish line literally just bleeding, wounds open. Cycling can be pretty, pretty rough like that, but he’s a tough, tough guy and I…
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