The four-time Tour de France winner crashed at high-speed on Wednesday fracturing his right elbow, and right femur as well as several ribs. The fall took place during a recon of the stage 4 time trial at the Criterium du Dauphine and after several hours of medical assistance on the roadside near Roanne Froome was airlifted to hospital.
On Thursday morning a Team Ineos spokesperson confirmed to Cyclingnews that Froome was still in intensive care but there was no update on how last night’s surgery had gone. The spokesperson also confirmed that Froome had not fractured his pelvis.
Michelle Froome is with her husband as is Team Ineos doctor Richard Usher.
"He’s hit a wall at 60kph or something like that, he’s got a bad fracture, he’s badly injured," Ineos team manager Dave Brailsford said on Wednesday afternoon.
“Our first, primary thought is for his care and make sure he gets the best medical care now as he possibly can. Think about his family, make sure they’re OK and in the meantime continue to race and focus on the races coming up in due course.”
Froome will miss this year’s Tour de France and his quest to win a fifth title is over for this season at least. It is far too early to consider or predict timelines in terms of recovery but it’s unlikely that Froome will race again this season given the recovery time other cyclists have needed for similar injuries.
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Team Ineos will also need to consider their structure and plans for this year’s Tour de France with defending champion Geraint Thomas and young climber Egan Bernal expected to take leadership roles. Both riders are set to take part in the Tour de Suisse later this month.
Team Ineos are expected to make further announcements on Froome's condition later today.
Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.
