The next Tour de France, which will start from Nice on August 29, will not have two winners of the round, the Kenyan Chris Froome and the Welshman Geraint Thomas. Their team, Ineos, have not included them in the squad to play the Grande Boucle. Dave Brailsford, the manager, did not shake his hand and he has chosen the eight runners for their state of form and not for their record. Change of era in the Ineos.
In principle, the Ineos wants Froome to be the leader in the Tour of Spain and for Thomas to take care of the Giro d’Italia. “We have analyzed how we can win the Tour this year and I think we have a very united and passionate team, ready to undertake the mission,” says Brailsford, who has left two pillars of Ineos out of that group.
Egan Bernal, who seems to have some back problems, will be the leader. The last winner of the Tour will have at his service Castroviejo, Kwiatkowski, Rowe, Van Baarle and the young Sivakov, a bib full of future. The losses of Froome and Thomas are occupied by the Costa Rican Andrey Amador, a first-rate gregarious, and the Ecuadorian Richar Carapaz, who is the great novelty.
The winner of the last Giro did not have this edition of the Tour in his plans, but he has been called up due to the poor form of Thomas and Froome in races such as the recent Dauphiné. Also, Carapaz may be the alternative if Bernal is not at his best.
The rejuvenation of the ‘eight’ of the Tour certifies the generational change. Froome, 35, with a contract signed for 2021 with the Israel team, and Thomas, 34, are now part of the past of the British squad. Froome won the Tour in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017. Thomas did it in 2018. Last year it was Bernal’s turn, who will try to repeat his triumph with the help of Sivakov and Carapaz.
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