Chris Froome will try to win his third Tour de France in 2016, and, less than a month later, compete in both the Rio Olympic road race and time trial.
“Both the [Olympic] road race and the time trial do suit me very well,” Froome said on Sky Sports. “The time trial has over 1,000 meters of climbing in it, so it’s going to be a tough time trial. It’s long. I think it’s over 50 [kilometers], so for an individual time trial, that’s a long event. The road race also. Given the road race is over, again, 250 kilometers, I think, with close to 5,000 meters of climbing, that’s a tough race — really tough race. Hopefully, if the form is still good come the end of the Tour de France, hopefully I’ll be up for a shot in the road race.
“That’s a massive goal to set, and I think I’m just going to have to take each event as it comes, but it’s exciting.”
In 2012, Froome finished second to countryman Bradley Wiggins in the Tour de France. He then finished 109th in the London Olympic road race six days later. He took bronze behind gold medalist Wiggins in the Olympic time trial four days after that.
In 2016, there is an extra week between the end of the Tour de France (July 24) and the Olympic road race (Aug. 6) as compared to 2012.
Since professional cyclists competed in the Olympics for the first time in 1996, the single reigning Tour de France winner not to compete in the Olympics was Lance Armstrong in 2004. During that Tour, Armstrong said he declined an invitation to compete in the Athens Olympics, where the time trial was three weeks after the Tour de France finish, to spend time with his children.
Wiggins, 35, has turned his focus back to track cycling, where he won the first six of his seven Olympic medals over four Games. If Wiggins makes it to Rio and wins one medal, he will become the most decorated British Olympian ever.
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