Chris Froome has warned of the long-term effects of COVID-19, arguing that many riders are struggling for months post-infection and highlighting the potential risks to the heart.
The Israel-Premier Tech rider contracted COVID-19 for the first time at this year’s Tour de France , forcing him to leave the race after 17 stages and curtailing what had seemed like significant progress in his long-term recovery from his 2019 crash.
The four-time yellow jersey winner returned to action at the Vuelta a España but, despite finishing the 21 stages, he largely struggled and only finished in the top 100 on five occasions.
"I came out of the season not feeling good," Froome said in his latest YouTube video. "I feel I really needed a break. COVID really knocked me for six."
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"I just wasn’t able to come back from that. I never felt like I had lots of energy on the bike. I went to the Vuelta to build through the race but all the way through I felt flat, flat, flat."
Froome also argued that his "VO2max was definitely affected by COVID".Froome went to Israel for physiological testing earlier in the off-season and registered a VO2 max of 72.1, normalised to 75 if he were at race weight. In 2015, when Froome underwent testing in a bid to quell […]
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