A look at the 2015 Tour de France favorites June 12 2015
With only less than four weeks remaining between now and the start of the Tour de France. Here’s a recap of the top contenders.
Vincenzo Nibali
• Trained at altitude on Mount Teide volcano in the Canary Islands
• Pre-Tour test at Criterium du Dauphiné
• So far nearly identical to results as last year
Chris Froome
• Defeated Alberto Contador at Ruta del Sol ("Route of the Sun")
• Trained at altitude on Mount Teide volcano
• Placed 3rd at Tour of Romandie (part of the UCI World Tour)
Alberto Contador
• Goal to win Giro d’Italia and Tour de France in the same season
• Pre-Tour tune up at four day race Route du Sud (stage race in the French Pyrenees )
• Balance rest and training, no easy task with just two weeks before Tour
Nairo Quintana
• Best climber in the peloton
• Skipped Tour last year after winning Giro d’Italia
• Acclimated racing on cobblestones, Stage 4 of Tour covers seven sections of them
• Training at altitude at home in Colombia
Joaquim Rodriguez
• Finished 10 of grand tour 10 times in career
• Won two difficult stages in Tour of the Basque Country (stage race)
• Next race is Dauphiné
The French Team
• Jean-Christophe Peraud and Thibaut Rinot with second and third at the Tour
• Frances best finishes since 1997
• Dauphiné event important for French squad
The American Team
• Tejay van Garderen and Andrew Talansky making Dauphiné last race before Tour
• Van Garden winning stage at the Volta Catalunya
• Talansky won Dauphiné last year, but abandoned Tour of California due to illness in Stage one
• Came back with win at US Pro Time Trial two weeks later
• Both need a strong showing at Dauphiné