Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

news

Updated: Chris Froome and BMC Racing rubbish Team Sky star transfer rumour

L'Equipe said Tour de France champion unhappy with way Sky's image has been tarnished and wants out...

Chris Froome and BMC Racing have rubbished a report in this morning's edition of French sports daily l’Equipe that the three-time Tour de France champion wants to leave Team Sky despite having a year of his contract to run and had approached the US-based team with an offer to join it for a salary of €5 million a year.

Speaking before the start of today's Stage 5 of the Criterium du Dauphiné, Froome told Cyclingnews.com that the French newspaper's report was "complete rubbish."

BMC Racing general manager Jim Ochowicz told Cycling Weekly: “It’s a complete lie. That’s a lie.

“I wouldn’t even classify it as a rumour," he added. "It’s a flat-out lie.”

If that is the case, one might be entitled to wonder why L'Equipe might publish a story so close to the Tour de France, where Froome is looking for a fourth victory in five years and BMC Racing's Richie Porte looks set to start among the favourites given his strong showing so far in the Dauphiné where he won yesterday's individual time trial and lies second overall.

Could it be an attempt to destabilise both teams ahead of a race where last year's runner-up, AG2R-La Mondiale's Romain Bardet, carries the hopes of a home victory for the first time since Bernard Hinault's fifth and final victory in 1985? 

According to L'Equipe's report, BMC Racing general manager Jim Ochowicz was said to have rebuffed the approach for now, with his priority being to secure existing backer TAG Heuer as replacement sponsor for Swiss bike brand BMC.

The 32-year-old, a founder member of Team Sky when it began racing in 2010, has reportedly unhappy with the team’s involvement in the ‘Jiffy Bag’ affair over a medicine delivered for Sir Bradley Wiggins at the 2011 Criterium du Dauphiné that is the subject of a UK Anti-Doping investigation.

He has said that the controversy over that and Therapeutic Use Exemptions issued to Wiggins ahead of races including the 2012 Tour de France, which he won with Froome second, threatened to tarnish Team Sky’s clean image as well as casting a cloud over his own performances.

> Froome: I want answers about Wiggins' injections

Froome has been reported as being disappointed with Sir Dave Brailsford’s handling of the issue, with rumours intensifying of a rift between the pair earlier this year when the team had to pull a letter expressing support for Brailsford after it turned out its star rider hadn’t signed it.

Subsequently, Froome issued a statement in which he gave Brailsford his support, but also made clear he was not happy with how the team had dealt with the negative publicity that had engulfed it in the preceding months.

> “Without Dave B, there is no Team Sky” – Chris Froome finally comes out in support of Sir Dave Brailsford

He said: “I completely understand why people feel let down by the way in which the situation has been handled, and going forward we need to do better.”

Froome added: “I would like to apologise for this on behalf of myself and the other riders of Team Sky who feel passionately about our sport and winning clean. I believe in the people around me, and what we are doing.”

L’Equipe’s report comes the day after BMC Racing’s hope for this year’s Tour de France, Froome’s close friend and former lieutenant at Team Sky, Richie Porte, put in a towering performance to win the Stage 4 time trial at the Criterium du Dauphiné.

Froome – who is looking to win the week-long race for a record fourth time – finished eighth, 37 seconds down on the Australian, while Lotto Soudal’s Thomas De Gendt retains the overall lead, with Porte moving into second place, 27 seconds behind him.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

Add new comment

34 comments

Avatar
Colin Peyresourde replied to Charlie-CarbsAndCycling | 7 years ago
0 likes

spinner98 wrote:

Why would BMC sign him, they already have porte, makes zero sense. Surely he would go to a team without a GC contender

Oh yeah! I forgot that Porte had won and defended plenty of Grand Tours, oh, wait....

It sure wouldn't be great for Porte as it would likely dent his ambitions, but they are good friends. I mean who else looks after him like Froome does.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/amp.timeinc.net/cyclingweekly/news/racing/c...

What a difference a year makes.

 

Avatar
stenmeister | 7 years ago
1 like

Ritchie Porte won't be happy now he's on a roll.

Avatar
Yorkshire wallet | 7 years ago
4 likes

Would he be ok if they use a briefcase?

Avatar
ant8 replied to Yorkshire wallet | 7 years ago
0 likes
Yorkshire wallet wrote:

Would he be ok if they use a briefcase?

A tattered red briefcase!

Pages

Latest Comments