Cycling: After 2012, Team Sky ended the season as the best team again this year. In the UCI WorldTour ranking of the teams, the Brits were able to keep Quick-Step Floors and BMC behind them. Of course, Chris Froome has the biggest part in this. True to the motto "Sky is the Limit", the team dominated the Tour de France and the Vuelta a Espana in particular. For 2018, however, there are some question marks. It could be the most difficult year for the British team.
departures
Ian Boswell (Katusha Alpecin)
Peter Kennaugh (Bora Hansgrohe)
Mikel Landa (Movistar)
Mikel Nieve (Mitchelton Scott)
Danny Van Poppel (Lotto NL-Jumbo)
Elijah Viviani (Quick Step)
Additions
Leonardo Basso (General Store-Bottoli-Zardini)
Egan Bernal (Androni Sidermec Bottecchia)
Jonathan Castroviejo (Movistar)
David De la Cruz (Quick Step)
Kristoffer Halvorsen (Joker Icopal)
Chris Lawless (Axeon Hagens Berman)
Pavel Sivakov (BMC Development)
Dylan Van Baarle (Cannondale-Drapac)
Team 2018
BASO Leonardo
BERNAL Egan Arley
CASTROVIEJO Jonathan
DE LA CRUZ David
DEIGNAN Philip
DIBBEN Jonathan
DOULL Owain
ELISSONDE Kenny
FROOME Christopher
GEOGHEGAN HART Tao
GOLAS Michal
HALVORSEN Kristoffer
HENAO Sebastian
HENAO Sergio Luis
INTXAUSTI Beñat
KIRYIENKA Vasil
KNEES Christian
KWIATKOWSKI Michal
LAWLESS Christopher
LOPEZ David
MOSCON Gianni
POELS Wout
PUCCIO Salvatore
PINK Diego
ROWE hatch
SIVAKOV Pavel
STANNARD Ian
THOMAS Geraint
Van Baarle Dylan
WIśNIOWSKI Łukasz
Kwiatkowski regained strength, Thomas on the rise
The British team Sky was launched in 2009. Since then, the British team has had numerous successes. After Bradley Wiggins, it was Chris Froome in particular who has scored a decent number of points and victories in recent seasons. In 2018, #1 in the UCI ranking was achieved not only because of the winner of the Tour and the Vuelta. The entire team knew how to convince throughout the season. Above all, Michal Kwiatkowski has found his way back to his old strength. After a very poor performance in 2016, he was able to contribute a lot to the satisfaction of the team bosses this year. This is how the Pole won the one-day races Strade Bianche, Milan-Sanremo and the Classica San Sebastián. He also ended up at #2 in the Amstel Gold Race and at #3 Liege-Bastogne-Liège. As a helper he was an important building block for Chris Froome at the Tour de France. Teammate Geraint Thomas could have had a similarly strong year. The Brit started the Giro d'Italia as captain, but there he retired after a fall. After all, after his recovery he was allowed to win the prologue of the Tour de France in Düsseldorf and thus wear the yellow jersey.
Froome with historic double
Even if many drivers were able to convince Sky in 2017, once again one man outshined all the others. For the first time, Chris Froome not only won the Tour de France, but also the Vuelta a Espana. He finally entered the history books of cycling. Despite the success, it shouldn't be forgotten that the Brit encountered a tough headwind in the Tour de France. Excluding the times from the time trials, Froome would not have won the Tour of France. In the mountains, Romain Bardet and Rigoberto Uran, as well as sometimes Fabio Aru, presented themselves as the stronger pilots. However, with the Tour de France being won by the most complete rider in the peloton, Froome once again came out on top. The results and the distances from 2017 should actually give the competition more courage.
How strong is Sky without Chris Froome?
As of now, Chris Froome is the 2017 double winner as he won the Tour de France and the Vuelta a Espana. It remains to be seen, however, whether this will remain the case. On September 7, 2017, he was after the 18th stage of the Tour of Spain namely tested positive. At the mountain finish at Alto de Las Machucos, the permitted limit of the asthma drug salbutamol was exceeded. Instead of the permitted 1.000 nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml), 2.000 ng/ml were measured. Now Chris Froome has to reckon with the fact that he will be stripped of his Vuelta victory. In addition, Froome would probably not be allowed to drive in 2018 either. The question arises as to how well the troupe can function without its leader. With Richie Porte, Mikel Nieve and Mikel Landa, strong ranking drivers have been lost in recent times. Can Geraint Thomas follow in these big footsteps? Sky cannot be much more variable in the coming season. With Elia Viviani and Danny Van Poppel you have given up your two strongest sprinters.
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