Froome unfairly castigated because of cycling's discredited past

Proving innocence, on the other hand, is a completely different matter, so as Chris Froome produces one of the great sporting performances to move within touching distance of a second Tour de France title, he does so with the gravest of accusations ringing in his ears.

Instead of being showered with praise as he reinforces his supremacy on a daily basis, he has cups of urine thrown in his face as he pushes his body to its limits. Every stage win brings mutterings of suspicion. Every second taken out of his rivals is interpreted as another ill-gotten gain.

Sadly, that is what happens when you dominate a sport that has become so tainted by the abuses of the past that brilliance is an attribute to be feared rather than admired. The legacy of the years of dishonesty and cover-up is that when a new champion like Froome emerges, it is easier to be cynical and suspicious than leave yourself open to the crushing disappointment of a positive test somewhere down the line.

That is what the Lance Armstrongs and Jan Ullrichs of cycling’s discredited past have created, and it is why Froome’s team principal, Sir Dave Brailsford, felt compelled to host an open press conference on Tuesday in which he revealed precise details of the British rider’s physical data from the climb up La Pierre-Saint-Martin during the tenth stage of this year’s Tour.

Froome’s ascent, which saw him power away from his main rival, Nairo Quintana, was a remarkable display of power and acceleration at the crucial point of an especially gruelling day. “I had been to recon it about a month ago,” Froome told respected cycling writer David Walsh as the clouds of suspicion intensified. “I said, ‘I am going to attack right here, this spot’. We pulled it off exactly how we planned it’.”

To Froome, it was a perfectly executed piece of race riding. Others, most notably within the French media, continue to view it rather differently, and when Brailsford appeared on the cycling equivalent of Match Of The Day on Sunday night, he found himself attempting to counter a pre-filmed package in which Froome’s performance was directly compared to the uphill attacks that used to set Armstrong apart from the rest of the peloton.

It is unfortunate for Froome that his tactics and execution on this year’s Tour so closely resemble the kind of methods that Armstrong used to employ. Having powered his way through the relentless roads of Belgium and northern France in the race’s early stages, he blew his opponents away with a couple of breathtaking attacks in the opening mountain skirmishes.

Like Armstrong, who was the head of US Postal, he has benefitted from the support of a supremely well-drilled team. Team Sky team-mates Geraint Thomas and Richie Porte have ridden superbly in support of their team leader. A positive reading of that would be that they have been inspired by Froome’s performances in the yellow jersey and benefitted from the meticulous planning and organisation overseen by Brailsford. A more cynical response would state that they are all in it together.

Again, it is impossible to dispel suspicion, but at some stage, you have to question what the point of the Tour de France is if success cannot be celebrated as something worth pursuing. “It almost feels as if I shouldn’t have taken a minute (advantage on his rivals),” admitted Froome earlier this week. “I should have gone a bit slow, which is ridiculous.”

If cycling’s Grand Tours are to reclaim their status as some of the biggest and most important events in sport, we are going to have to reach a point where the sniping abates. Perhaps, with Armstrong’s shadow continuing to loom large, it is too early for that, although it would be interesting to see the French media’s reaction if one of their own riders was to come from nowhere to dominate next year’s Tour.

Team Sky, with their links to the British Olympic team and arrogant assertion that they would claim a Tour de France title within five years of their creation - words that quickly became reality – are an inviting target for a nationalistic press pack who are about to mark 30 years since Bernhard Hinault became the last French winner of the Tour.

That is not to say that probing questions should be avoided, but from this side of the Channel, it feels as though the last two weeks have increasingly resembled a witch-hunt with Froome cast as the central villain.

That feels exceptionally harsh on a softly-spoken, committed and passionate sportsman, whose story would otherwise act as a shining beacon for those who want to believe that great achievements can stem from unpromising beginnings.

Born and raised in Kenya, Froome learned how to ride with his impoverished black friends, living three to a bed in two-roomed huts as he embarked on a career that was transformed when his parents emigrated to England when he was a teenager.

He has always maintained his innocence when it comes to accusations of drug taking, and Team Sky have placed so much stock in their much-trumpeted anti-doping stance that it would be an especially crushing blow if failings were to emerge in the future.

Brailsford, with his knighthood earned through remarkable achievements with Britain’s Olympic track cycling squad, would be exposed as one of the biggest frauds in sport, such has been his willingness to tie his own reputation to his team’s clean record.

History proves that nothing should be entirely discounted, but if that means it is impossible to trust anything, it is time to cast cycling into the realms of irrelevant entertainment rather than genuine sporting competition.

Personally, I’d rather believe in what I’m seeing. Somebody has to be better than everyone else, so why shouldn’t it be Froome? And if, as expected, he is celebrating a second Tour title on the Champs-Elysees on Sunday, it is to be hoped he is afforded the recognition and respect he deserves.