Exit at Tour de France dress rehearsal - Froome ends Dauphine prematurely

Around three weeks before the start, cycling star Chris Froome has suffered a setback for a possible start at the 109th Tour de France.

Exit before stage 7

The 37-year-old Briton and four-time Tour winner did not compete in the seventh stage of the Tour de France on Saturday. Critérium du Dauphiné in the south-east of France. This was announced by Froome's Israeli team Israel-PremierTech.

"It's disappointing, but my progress so far has been good and I don't want to risk a setback at this important stage of the season," said Froome, adding: "I was looking forward to the last two stages of the Dauphiné, but then I didn't feel 100 per cent fit."

Froome wants to take a short break

The eight-day tour through south-east France traditionally serves many riders as a dress rehearsal for the Tour of France.

"I did my best to get through yesterday, but it was clear that I wasn't feeling any better," Froome tweeted. He will now take a short break and then "carry on straight away". Since his serious training crash during the 2019 Dauphiné, Froome has been searching for his old form. A nomination for the race on 1 July in Denmark capital starting Tour of France 2022 is still open.

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