Froome gets off the bus ten minutes before the start. The press officer tells him that we have some questions and on the morning that announces the arrival of Longiano of the Coppi and Bartali Week, yesterday, Chris seems in good spirits. Except that with the helmet, glasses, and mask up to his eyes, it's hard to recognize him.
We're talking about Bernal
If you want to ask him for a prediction about the season, says the press officer, it's out of the question. Luckily, that's not what we're here for. Bernal's accident made us think of himChris knows exactly what Egan is going through, because he's still paying for it. You're a giant of your sport. You won the Tour. You won the Giro. The team, the enormous Sky that later became Ineos, is counting on you. And an accident wipes you out while you're training on the time trial bikeToo many coincidences not to think about it.
«I thought about it too – he says – we understood immediately that it was a very serious accident, very grave. There was something similar to mineThe time trial bike, very high speed. Him against a bus, I'm against a wall... ".
There's a bitter sarcasm in the smile that surfaces through the tone of voice. As he speaks, Chris clips the computer onto the handlebars, but every now and then he looks up and stares at us.
After the crash in June 2019, Froome returned to the peloton in January following the UAE Tour After the first interventions, Bernal also reassured his fans via Twitter
After the crash in June 2019, Froome returned to the peloton in January following the UAE Tour After the first interventions, Bernal also reassured his fans via Twitter
One day at a time
June 12, 2019, was a Wednesday. It was time trial day at the Dauphiné, and Froome was 24 seconds behind Dylan Teuns and could have taken the leader's jersey. Chris had won the previous year's Giro and then placed third in the Tour won by Thomas. Bernal made his debut in the same Tour, having recently moved from Androni to Team Sky.
Egan wasn't at the Dauphiné; the team had sent him to the Tour de Suisse. Therefore, he didn't witness his captain's horrific accident. During the reconnaissance of the time trial route, Froome was hit by a gust of wind and ended up against a wallThe diagnosis was harsh and somewhat ended his career. He suffered fractures to his femur, elbow, several ribs, hip, and neck.
Since then Chris has not won a race and he was no longer the rider he was. Yet he is facing the second part of his career with great dignity.
«One piece of advice I can give to Egan – he says – is to live week by week, not to think too far aheadHe'll have to do his best at all times to get back. There's no need to rush, or you risk making mistakes. Then you have to stop and start over. Anyway. I realized that I was lucky to still be a professional after such a bad accidentThe alternative was to stop and stay at home."
The fortune of returning
They urge him. The feeling is that he would stay and talk, but they pull his sleeve and you have to get in the way to get another answer.
«I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to come back – he says – and I think it will be the same for Egan in the end. When I saw the photos, I immediately understood that the legs were broken, a bit like me, though there were also different aspects between the two incidentsI immediately thought it was serious and from that moment I started thinking about the dangers of time trial bikes in everyday training. When you're up there, you don't have your hands on the brakes.And you have to sit in a position that's not very safe. Time trials are part of cycling, but At some point we have to ask ourselves where the line is between performance and safety.».
