Three times Tour de France winner will ride in Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic


Chris Froome. Picture: Team Sky

Chris Froome is to race through Putney this Sunday just a week after winning the Tour de France for the third time.

He is riding along with his Team Sky colleagues in the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic the route of which goes down Putney Hill, along the High Street and over Putney Bridge.

He said:
"I'll ride RideLondon next Sunday as a one-day race before we fly to Rio, and then we'll be there for a week before [the road race], to look at the roads and start training again."

Chris heads a formidable squad that includes Geraint Thomas, Ian Stannard, Ben Swift, Christian Knees and Dutch sprinter Danny van Poppel. The participation of Team Sky means that four out of the five road racers representing Britain at the Olympics will be in the race.

Chris has not taken part in the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic before but did ride the 2012 Olympic Games road race on similar roads. The last time he rode in the UK was in 2014 when an early stage of the Tour de France was held here.

Chris said:
"The last few years, I haven't done much racing in the UK. Time wise it didn't work out. The Tour of Britain conflicted with the Vuelta [a Espana], national championships conflicted with my tapering and training for the Tour. This seems like the perfect opportunity to go over to London. It will be a massive honour to engage with the British fans, which I haven't been able to do."

Geraint Thomas is one of the most talented all-rounders in the peloton. The Welshman won two gold medals on the track in the team pursuit in the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games before concentrating on the road. Ian Stannard has also proved himself to be one of Froome’s loyal lieutenants at the Tour de France. But the 29-year-old is also one of the best one-day racers in the world and finished in a superb third place at this year’s Paris-Roubaix.

Steve Cummings, one of the stars of this year's Tour de France, and a member of Great Britain's team for Rio - is also confirmed for the Surrey classic. Cummings (35) made it two Tour de France stage wins in two years when he won stage seven of this year's tour with a solo breakaway.

This year's line-up also includes seven UCI WorldTour teams and a selection of the best riders in the world including 2016 Tour de France stage winner Michael Matthews (Orica-BikeExchange) , German springer Andre Greipel (Lotto Soudal) who won the last stage of the Tour de France and former world champion Tom Boonen (Etixx-Quick-Step).

Celebrity cyclists taking part include Dame Kelly Holmes and ex-F1 star Mark Webber. Dame Kelly won’t be the only Olympic gold medallist taking part at Prudential RideLondon, with two champion rowers on the Start Line of the 100.

Mark Hunter won a gold in the lightweight double sculls in Beijing in 2008 and then a silver four years later in London, while Tim Foster was part of the gold medal-winning coxless fours crew in Sydney 2000. Mark is riding for SportsAid and Tim for Sparks.

Other distinguished sportsmen riding the 100 include England’s World Cup winning rugby captain Martin Johnson and former England cricket captain Allan Lamb.

The peloton will pass through Putney town centre on the return leg from the Surrey Hills, after cyclists have already travelled from the Olympic Park, out to Surrey before heading back to the finish line at the Mall.

The amateur cycle ride will be swiftly followed by the professional men's race on the same day. Sunday's event involves more than 26,000 riders taking part in the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 – many cycling in aid of charity – as well as an afternoon race for the world's top professional male riders, the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic.

Cyclists are expected to begin arriving in Putney at 9.40am, with the professional riders expected around 5.55pm - although if the race is a fast one then they could be in Putney by 5.45pm.

The A3 will be open, although the exit slips at Esher Common. Coombe Lane and Tibbet’s Corner will be closed.

Roads adjoining the event routes will have local access only for residents and businesses, with usual Sunday parking restrictions unless otherwise stated. For assistance with journey planning, visit tfl.gov.uk/status-updates/major-works-and-events/travel-impact-sunday-31-july

July 25, 2016