The news that Chris Froome will not start the 2019 Tour de France has caused huge shockwaves in the cycling world.
Team Ineos rider Froome was in pursuit of a record-equalling fifth Tour victory this year and looked to be finding his form at the perfect point in the season during the Critérium du Dauphiné.
But disaster struck the Brit before the stage four time trial in France, as Froome fell hard during a recon of the 26.1km course and was rushed to hospital.
UPDATE: Chris Froome sustained ‘multiple serious injuries’ in Critérium du Dauphiné 2019 crash, Team Ineos confirms
Team Ineos confirmed that Froome would not be starting the time trial and the signs looked foreboding for Froome’s Tour return.
Not long after the news of Froome’s crash emerged, team principal Sir Dave Brailsford confirmed that the 34-year-old will not start the 2019 edition.
>>> Race leader Marianne Vos abandons Women’s Tour 2019 after high-speed crash
According to Murphy's law… anything that could go wrong, went wrong.
Get well soon @chrisfroome 💪 @dauphine @TeamINEOS
📷 @GettySport pic.twitter.com/jzdGhdCfv6— Michał Kwiatkowski (@kwiato) June 12, 2019
Plenty of people have taken to Twitter to wish Froome a quick recovery after what sounds like a horrible injury, including his team-mate Michał Kwiatkowski and the official Giro d’Italia Twitter.
Forza @chrisfroome! Get well soon. #Giro pic.twitter.com/YuIFxXxgWw
— Giro d'Italia (@giroditalia) June 12, 2019
Others have pointed out what a dramatic day it was in the world of cycling.
Along with Froome’s crash, the leader of the Women’s Tour Marianne Vos was caught in a high-speed crash and was forced to abandon the race, and Wout van Aert took the first WorldTour win of his career in the Dauphiné time trial. It has been a whirlwind few hours for the sport.
Chris Froome crashes out of the Dauphine, and the Tour. Wout Van Aert wins a WT time trial against some pretty talented opposition. And Adam Yates rides into yellow…
Go on, who called that combination of random events last night?#Dauphine
— Will Newton (@InsidePeloton96) June 12, 2019
Froome out of the Dauphiné after a recon crash, the Women’s Tour neutralised because of a crash… can cycling please calm down today
— Robyn (@rxbyndavidson) June 12, 2019
Of course Froome’s crash also has major implications for the 2019 Tour de France, as this will be the first year he hasn’t started the race since 2011.
Brailsford described the incident as “very serious” and that it will take a long time for Froome to race again. The 34-year-old hit a wall on a downhill section of the 26.1km time trial course in Roanne.
Brailsford told the press: “He’s got a bad fracture, he’s badly injured and it sounds like he has a fracture of the femur, to be confirmed, he’s not in hospital yet. He’s just going to get airlifted shortly to hospital, Saint-Etienne, maybe Lyon.”
His absence will make this a wide-open Tour, as last year’s winner and Froome’s team-mate Geraint Thomas will take over Ineos leadership duties and contenders like Tom Dumoulin (Sunweb) and Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) will see if they can take the most prestigious crown in cycling.
Awful news any time. Worse just weeks out from the biggest race of the year. Here's hoping he's back sooner than Brailsford's quotes suggest.https://t.co/D7dH6Fa7Aw
— Simon Richardson (@SRichardsonCW) June 12, 2019
Just written a bit about what Froome's crash means for the race as well as the appalling luck for him. IMO it means Tour will feel like 76 without Merckx, 83 without Hinault, 97 sans Indurain. Multiple Tour winners have a huge influence on the race even when they aren't winning.
— William Fotheringham (@willfoth) June 12, 2019
According to the expert research of the Pro Cycling Stats team, a broken femur tends to be bad news for the rider suffering it in terms of a comeback.
All riders in our injury database who had a fractured femur (we registered 19 since 2014) after May 15th didn’t come back anymore in same season #dauphine @ChrisFroome @TeamINEOS pic.twitter.com/g19fE4sSgR
— ProCyclingStats.com (@ProCyclingStats) June 12, 2019
Some have suggested that it could be Egan Bernal who finds himself with Team Ineos leadership responsibilities next month.
So, Egan Bernal to win the Tour?
— Felix Lowe (@saddleblaze) June 12, 2019
We still await further details from Team Ineos about Froome’s injuries and the circumstances around the crash.