Less than 24 hours after his first Tour de France victory, Chris Froome is already looking to the future and wants to round off his stand-out season with a shot at the World Championships title in September.
"It is hard to talk so far in advance," he admitted. "But if I look at my career and what my ambitions are as a professional cyclist, targeting the Tour has got to be the biggest goal, and to be able to do that year after year has got to be what my main focus is on.
"Every year things are going to change with the parcours, but I would like to think I'm a well-balanced rider. I can time trial reasonably, I can climb pretty well, and I can't really see what else they're going to put in the Tour that I would struggle with, so I would like to think I could come back every year and focus on the Tour.
"The success I have achieved at this year's Tour has set an amazing platform for me and it's been a massive learning experience. It would be a shame not to carry that experience forward and use it in future editions."
Future rivals
Froome is only too aware, however, that there are a number of riders rising through the ranks who will provide a stern challenge in the immediate years to come. Nairo Quintana is one such example, having taking both the white (young rider classification) and polka-dot (mountains classification) jerseys in a stunning Tour debut, as well as finishing second overall behind a suitably-impressed Froome.
"Guys like Quintana are going to be around for a long time and he is one of the guys who I am going to have to battle it out with for the next few years," Froome accepted. "All the time there are younger guys coming up through the ranks, guys who are going to keep me on my toes.
"Aside from Quintana, there are other guys like Michal Kwiatkowski and Andrew Talansky who stand out. They might not have turned too many head in this year's Tour but they are heading in the right direction and I definitely won't have it easy in the future.
"As I have said before though, I would love to come back and keep targeting the Tour every year. I am 28 now. Most cyclists come into their prime around their early 30s. I would love to come back and keep contending for the Tour as long as I can and as long as I have the motivation."
