British Cycling's Ride of the Year 2011: The Nominations
Chris Froome wins remarkable stage 17 of Vuelta
What: Vuelta a Espana Stage 17
Where: Pena Cabarga, Spain
When: 4 September
How it unfolded:
The surprise package of the Veulta, Chris Froome hadn’t read the script and entered stage 17 of the Grand Tour in second place in the general classification behind Juan José Cobo with the two embarking on a remarkable battle in the closing moments of the 211km stage from Faustino V to the mountain-top finish at Pena Cabarga.
The Kenyan-born Brit managed to build a 20 second lead over Cobo before the Spaniard somehow battled back to lead into the final 100 metres. As it seemed all but over Froome showed the tenacity and grit that had helped the Team Sky rider make his name in the tour and overtook Cobo on the last turn, taking the inside line to win the most incredible of finishes. Post-race Froome was barely able to stand given his efforts.
The stage victory represented Froome’s first Grand Tour win and would help him finish second overall in the general classification ahead of teammate Bradley Wiggins, a surprising effort from the 26 year-old who wasn’t widely known before his antics in Spain.
What Froome said:
"That was one of the hardest days on the bicycle in my life."It was the last mountain-top finish so we came in here trying to do as much as we could - but Cobo was extremely strong again and is still holding the red jersey.
"The whole team have been fantastic throughout this race - they've done absolutely everything for me and Bradley."
Why should this be the British Cycling's Ride of the Year 2011?
This ride epitomised Froome’s efforts in the tour – against all the odds he managed to snatch victory at the death and go onto to finish second in the general classification, impressive enough but all the more remarkable given his profile prior to the tour.
You can place your vote for British Cycling’s Ride of the Year 2011 here. Please note voting opens at 9am on 15 December once all the nominations have been revealed and closes at 5pm on 18 December 2011.
