Chris Froome is not yet retired, but he is now without a team. The 40-year-old was confirmed to be leaving Israel-Premier Tech on Friday, as the team said farewell to departing riders.<\/p>\n
“We want to take the chance to thank our departing staff for all of their hard work and, of course, the departing riders: Pascal Ackermann, Chris Froome, Riley Pickrell, Matthew Riccitello, Michael Schwarzmann, and Mike Woods,” a post on their Instagram account read.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n “Thanks for the memories over the last years, we look forward to seeing you in the peloton next year or wherever the next chapter takes you!”<\/p>\n You may like<\/p>\n Froome is currently recovering from a life-threatening training crash<\/a> sustained at the end of August, which saw him suffer a a pericardial rupture, a tear to the sac that surrounds the heart, in the incident. His other injuries included a collapsed lung, five broken ribs and a fractured lumbar vertebrae.<\/p>\n He is still yet to officially retire, however, and has at times teased riding on into 2026. “I haven\u2019t 100% decided that I\u2019ll be retiring at the end of this year,” Froome told the Never Strays Far<\/a> podcast earlier this year. “Chances are, yes, I\u2019ll be calling it a day, but I\u2019m just keeping the door open. [I\u2019ll] see how this year goes, see how I\u2019m feeling towards the end of it.”<\/p>\n Froome last raced at the Tour of Poland in August, where he placed 68th overall. He joined Israel-Premier Tech in 2021 after 11 years with Team Sky and Ineos, during which time he won four Tours de France<\/a>, two Vueltas a Espa\u00f1a<\/a> and the Giro d’Italia<\/a>.<\/p>\n His time at Israel-Premier Tech did not live up to his self-imposed heights, more than partly down to the serious crash he was involved in in 2019,<\/a> aged 34. In the five years with the squad, he has finished in the top-20 of a race just six times. In 2023, IPT’s owner, Sylvan Adams, has said that signing the Tour winner was \u201cabsolutely not<\/a>\u201d value for money.<\/p>\n If this is the end, it seems a shame that Froome has not been able to go out on his terms, but don’t rule out a scheme that sees him keep racing a little while longer.<\/p>\n Separately, Israel-Premier Tech closed its social media accounts and website at the weekend, ahead of an expected rebrand<\/a>. It will be without Premier Tech<\/a>, though, who have already announced they are leaving.<\/p>\n