Alex Dowsett (Movistar Team) has confirmed that he is on the hunt for a place in the Great Britain Olympic Games squad, where both he and Chris Froome (Team Sky), amongst others, have their sights on the country’s single time trial spot in Rio.
Froome’s credentials for the place are considerable, and stretch back a long way. Whilst his more recent results do no need repeating, it’s often forgotten the Sky rider’s first ever lead in a Grand Tour, in the Vuelta in 2011, came on the back of a strong mid-race time trial. Then after running close behind Bradley Wiggins in the Tour’s time trials the following year Froome secured a bronze medal in that speciality in the London Olympics in 2012. On paper, too, the hefty proportion of climbing on the Rio time trial course would be to Froome’s liking.
Dowsett has some significant victories against the clock to his name as well, including the Commonwealth Games title in 2014 and silver in 2010, a Giro d’Italia time trial win in 2013 ahead of Bradley Wiggins and multiple national time trial titles. Not to mention a UCI Hour Record.
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Dowsett and Froome are just two of several possible stand-out names for that single place, and a lot can happen between now and the final selection. The list of rivals for time trial gold in Rio is a long one as well, with Tony Martin through to Tom Dumoulin and Vasil Kiryenka all possible contenders.
“Rio is a goal,” Dowsett told Cyclingnews, “but it’s going to be super tough as neither me nor [GB teammate] Steve [Cummings] finished top ten in Richmond [the World Championships time trial], so we didn’t secure that extra place.”
Quite apart from Rio being a course he recognises which is “very hilly”, and therefore not so good for him, there’s also a rule which means that the time triallist has to take part in the road race, which Dowsett calls “stupid”. “It’s like asking [top sprinter] Usain Bolt to do the 400 as well as the 200 and the 100. It’s supposed to be the pinnacle of the sport, but putting in a rule like that dilutes the Olympics. A one hour test is very different to a six-hour race. But…c’est la vie.”
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