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Froome smacks encroaching fan.PNGVideo: Chris Froome smacks spectator on stage 8 climb
Today's stage winner, current yellow jersey holder, and reigning Tour de France champ, Chris Froome, had an eventful day in the saddle today, not least in the fan-relations department.
Sure, the Brit's stunning descent to the finish line which gave him a 13 second lead on the day and launched him into yellow for the first time this year, will grab all the headlines.
However, a little while earlier the Olympic bronze medalist was caught on camera smacking an overzealous fan in the side of the head on one of the day's four climbs.
The fan's full yellow outfit, from wig to cape, indicated that he was a Colombian fan. He also appeared to be having a great time running alongside Froome, until he was brought back to reality with a smack to the head.
>Read more: Rider sent crashing as spectator grabs handlebar in sprint finish
This is far from the first altercation Froome has had with spectators during the Tour de France. It seems that if they're not throwing cups of urine at him, or spitting at him on climbs, they're forcing him to smack them out of the way.
A very similar incident to todays took place in the 2013 Tour while Froome was in a break with Nairo Quintana.
While these incidents may seem somewhat comical given Froome's direct treatment of the encroaching spectators, the danger that these fans can cause is far from a joke.
Here's only one example of a spectator causing a huge crash at the Tour de France.
Notice how little contact is actually required to cause a large number of riders to crash:
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18 comments
Well aimed, the end result justifies the means of removing the 'idiot' obstruction.....what a d_ck!!!
Sean Kelly would have left him for dead!
I love the look of surprise on that utter bell-end's face
Chris Froome - legend.
I have always admired the role of the "puncheur" in cycling teams.....
I'll get my coat
And only a small fine for the 'unseemingly conduct'. Wonder if he's thinking "Worth it."
What a great descent from Froome to snatch the stage victory and the Yellow Jersey
First he punches someone, then he actually attacks on the descent ... that seems like quite a personality change for the man.
Typical road cc article. It's like reading the daily mail only with bikes...
Bernard Hainault would have got off the bike, nutted him then kicked his teeth in while he lay on the ground.
Love it. Well deserved punch in the face.
If you look, you can see the 'fan' had a bloody great flag flapping around at wheel level. He's lucky he didn't bring the entire group down.
I suspect that all the publicity given to 'Didi the Devil' in the past has encouraged a lot of these pillocks.
Brilliant. Let's see riders stand up for themselves. Go on Froome, hope the ASO give you the Combativity Award for the day. Yellow Jersey with a red number. Look out for it!
I appear to have been selecting an entirely different tiny prematurely aged Colombian.
I do hope Froome doesn't get any hassle about this. Go to the race. Watch the race. Don't affect the results. Is it so hard?
Thank god for that, I thought I was going mental.
"I appear to have been following some other diminutive Colombian"
It's time health and safety of the riders and spectators was addressed. As we have seen crashes have serious consequences on the race and the well being of the riders. Idiots should be curtailed.
"Colombian Nairo Quintana's absence from this year's Tour de France put to rest any speculation that the Colombian fan might have been planning on sabotaging Froome's race."
I know Quintana is pretty low-key, but I don't think he's vanished entirely!
Yeah, I was rather baffled by that bit in the article. Is the author even following the tdf?
Good. I hate people who get in the way of the race. My father was professional cyclist and it was the worst feeling when you loose seconds or a race due to idiots running on the road. Sometimes they think that a small pat on the back is good encouragement for you, but when 10 fans do that to you, you end up with a bruised back. One of the worst incidents my father has experienced was when he was racing in town in the hottest summer ever recorded. One grandma thought that spilling a bucket of water on the heads of cyclists will help them cooldown. She knocked them off the bikes...