Four-time Tour de France champion Chris Froome sustained a life-threatening heart injury during a training crash in France, his wife has confirmed.
The 40-year-old cyclist suffered a pericardial rupture, a rare tear in the sac surrounding the heart, alongside a pneumothorax, five broken ribs, and a fractured lumbar vertebra.
Froome underwent emergency surgery at Sainte Anne Toulon military hospital, one of France’s leading thoracic trauma centres.
The Israel–Premier Tech rider crashed on 27 August and was airlifted to hospital. Initial reports suggested broken bones, but Froome’s wife, Michelle, told The Times that his injuries were far more severe.
“It was clearly much more serious than some broken bones. He is fine, but it will be a long recovery process. He won’t be riding a bike for a while. Chris is happy for you to share this because people need to understand what is happening,” she said.
Michelle Froome added that doctors had shown Chris a video of the tear and its surgical repair, underlining the severity of the accident. The rider is now in stable condition and, according to a statement on his social media accounts, is in “good spirits” following surgery.
Froome’s contract with Israel–Premier Tech expires at the end of the season, making his participation in the remainder of the campaign unlikely.
The two-time Olympic medallist has previously faced serious crashes, including one in 2019 that forced him into intensive care with multiple fractures, causing him to miss that year’s Tour de France.
Froome won his first Tour de France in 2013 and dominated the mid-2010s with three consecutive victories in 2015, 2016, and 2017. He has also claimed one Giro d’Italia title and two Vuelta a España crowns, cementing his status as one of cycling’s most successful athletes.
