Teamless Chris Froome set to cross the Mediterranean Sea on a water bike

Will Chris Froome ever be seen in the professional peloton again? It is a question many fans are asking. The British legend has never officially retired and has no team for 2026 — yet he continues to hold out hope despite a string of setbacks in recent years. The 41-year-old keeps himself busy in other ways, and has a considerable challenge coming up.

Froome was the finest stage race rider of his generation throughout the 2010s. He won the Tour de France four times and also claimed victories at both the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España. After a horrific crash in 2019 he was never the same rider again: he signed for what is now NSN Cycling Team but was a shadow of his former self. A training crash in August 2025 made a professional comeback even harder, leaving him with a collapsed lung, five broken ribs and a fractured lumbar vertebra.

He could not find a team for the new season and was left badly battered by his injuries. Yet he was not ready to give up on his cycling career. Froome has since made a reasonable recovery — but without a team, continuing as a professional rider is extremely difficult.

In the meantime, the Kenya-born Briton is filling his time with other projects. He has already spoken about wanting to develop cycling in Africa, and is openly thinking about founding a cycling school on the continent. But for now, a new challenge is immediately on the horizon. Froome will be among 32 athletes tackling a crossing of the Mediterranean on water bikes on 19 June.

He will be joined by fellow former professionals Jakob Fuglsang and Filippo Pozzato. The event, called Together Crossing for the Pelagos, is a sporting and charitable initiative organised in support of the foundations of Prince Albert II and Princess Charlène of Monaco, raising money for ocean awareness and protection.

The crossing starts in Viareggio, Italy — the coastal town that also hosted this year's Giro d'Italia time trial — and eight teams of four will cover 225 kilometres by water bike to reach Monaco.

Author: David Bavin-Hobbs - [email protected]