Chris Froome left out of Israel-Premier Tech Tour de France squad

Chris Froome Israel Premier Tech

Four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome has been left out of Israel-Premier Techโ€™s eight-man team for the second consecutive year. The British rider faced a challenging start to the season, fracturing his scaphoid at Tirreno-Adriatico and only returning to competition in late May at the Mercan’Tour Classic Alpes-Maritimes.

He then competed in the Critรฉrium du Dauphinรฉ but admitted, “It will be tough to make the team” due to his limited racing days. With just one year remaining on his contract, the 2025 edition may be the 39-year-old’s final chance to ride the Tour again. It is now understood that Froome will likely concentrate on the Vuelta a Espaรฑa, a race he has triumphed in twice, in 2011 and 2017.

Team Focus on Stage Wins

Flรจche Wallonne winner and fellow Briton Stephen Williams is one of the key riders selected for the Tour instead, with Israel-Premier Tech’s team selection geared towards targeting stage wins. Williams will be joined by Derek Gee, who delivered a career-best performance at the Dauphinรฉ, securing his first WorldTour stage win and finishing third overall behind Primoลพ Rogliฤ of Bora-Hansgrohe and Matteo Jorgenson of Visma-Lease a Bike. Gee aims to emulate the success of fellow Canadians Hugo Houle and Michael Woods, who have captured stage victories for Israel-Premier Tech in the past two seasons.

“I’m unbelievably excited to be lining up at my first Tour,” said Gee in a team press release. “It’s truly a childhood dream to race the Tour de France, and I can’t wait to experience the atmosphere of the biggest race in the world.”

Both Gee and Williams will make their Tour debut after successful 2024 seasons. They will be joined by Hugo Houle, Jakob Fuglsang, Jake Stewart, Pascal Ackermann, Guillaume Boivin, and Krists Neilands.