The Globe and Mail - 16.10.2019

B18 O THEGLOBEANDMAIL| WEDNESDAY,OCTOBER16,2019

CORNERED BLISS SPEED BUMP BIZARRO

TELEVISION

WEDNESDAY (EASTERN TIME)

BASEBALL

MLB Playoffs: St. Louis vs. Washington,

NLCS game five, SN Ontario, East, West,

Pacific, 4 p.m. (if necessary)

MLB Playoffs: Houston vs. N.Y. Yankees,

ALCS game four, SN Ontario, East, West,

Pacific, 8 p.m.

BASKETBALL

NBA Pre-Season: Atlanta vs. N.Y. Knicks,

NBA TV Canada, 8 p.m.

NBA Pre-Season: Golden State vs. L.A.

Lakers, NBA TV Canada, 10:30 p.m.

FOOTBALL

NCAA: South Alabama vs. Troy, TSN 1, 4,

8 p.m.

GOLF

PGA Tour: The CJ Cup at Nine Bridges,

Golf Channel, 10 p.m.

European PGA: Amundi Open de

France, Golf Channel, 6 a.m. (Thursday)

HOCKEY

NHL: Toronto vs. Washington, SN 1, 7 p.m.

NHL: Philadelphia vs. Edmonton, SN

360, 9:30 p.m.

CANADIAN PREMIER LEAGUE

FALL SEASON

Team GP W L T GF GA Pts

xy-Calgary 16 10 1 5 32 10 35

y-Hamilton 17 10 3 4 29 19 34

York 16 6 8 2 26 24 20

Winnipeg 16 5 7 4 22 31 19

Victoria 16 4 7 5 21 28 17

Edmonton 16 3 7 6 15 20 15

Halifax 17 2 7 8 11 24 14

x — won spring season title; y —

qualified for league championship

Note:3 pts for a win, 1 for a tie.

Wednesday

All Times Eastern

Calgary at Hamilton, 7 p.m.

York at Winnipeg, 8 p.m.

Victoria at Edmonton, 9 p.m.

CFL

WEEK 19

Team GP W L T PF PA Pt

EAST DIVISION

y-Hamilton 15 12 3 0 459 288 24

x-Montreal 15 8 7 0 384 391 16

Toronto 15 3 12 0 292 505 6

Ottawa 15 3 12 0 259 450 6

WEST DIVISION

x-Calgary 15 10 5 0 396 329 20

x-Saskatchewan 15 10 5 0 410 330 20

x-Winnipeg 16 10 6 0 446 344 20

x-Edmonton 16 8 8 0 369 350 16

B.C. 16 5 11 0 376 404 10

x — clinched playoff berth

Note:2 pts for a win, 1 for a tie.

Bye:Edmonton

Friday

All Times Eastern

Toronto at Montreal, 7 p.m.

Saskatchewan at British Columbia, 10 p.m.

Saturday

Ottawa at Hamilton, 4 p.m.

Winnipeg at Calgary, 7 p.m.

U SPORTS FOOTBALL

WEEK NINE

Team GP W L T PF PA Pts

AUS

x-Acadia 6 6 0 0 248 116 12

Bishop’s 7 4 3 0 137 175 8

Saint Mary’s 6 3 3 0 137 148 6

Mt. Allison 6 2 4 0 128 115 4

St. F.X. 7 1 6 0 114 210 2

RSEQ

x-Montreal 7 6 1 0 141 77 12

Laval 6 5 1 0 250 59 10

Sherbrooke 6 2 4 0 106 145 4

McGill 7 2 5 0 101 174 4

Concordia 6 1 5 077 220 2

OUA

x-Western 7 7 0 0 258 152 14

x-McMaster 7 5 2 0 197 137 10

x-Guelph 7 5 2 0 202 116 10

x-Ottawa 7 5 2 0 229 165 10

Waterloo 7 4 3 0 274 252 8

Laurier 7 4 3 0 250 181 8

Carleton 7 3 4 0 159 204 6

Toronto 7 2 5 0 196 209 4

Queen’s 7 2 5 0 154 222 4

York 7 1 6 0 120 249 2

Windsor 8 1 7 0 190 342 2

CANADA WEST

x-Calgary 6 5 1 0 181 106 10

x-Alberta 6 4 2 0 153 155 8

x-Saskatchewan 6 4 2 0 198 114 8

Manitoba 6 3 3 0 164 166 6

Regina 6 1 5 0 133 158 2

British Columbia 6 1 5 0 108 238 2

x — clinched playoff berth.

Note:2 pts for a win, 1 for a tie.

Saturday

All Times Eastern

Carleton at Wilfrid Laurier, 11 a.m.

Saint Mary’s at Acadia, 1 p.m.

Ottawa at Western, 1 p.m.

Waterloo at McMaster, 1 p.m.

Guelph at Toronto, 1 p.m.

York at Queen’s, 1 p.m.

Bishop’s at Mount Allison, 2 p.m.

Regina at Alberta, 3 p.m.

Calgary at Manitoba, 3 p.m.

Concordia at Sherbrooke, 4 p.m.

Saskatchewan at British Columbia, 6 p.m.

Sunday

Montreal at Laval, 1 p.m.

NFL

AMERICANCONFERENCE

WLTPct PFPA

EAST

New England 6 0 0 1.000 190 48

Buffalo 4 1 0 .800 90 70

N.Y. Jets 1 4 0 .200 63 123

Miami 0 5 0 .000 42 180

SOUTH

Houston 4 2 0 .667 162 134

Indianapolis 3 2 0 .600 113 115

Jacksonville 2 4 0 .333 117 131

Tennessee 2 4 0 .333 98 92

NORTH

Baltimore 4 2 0 .667 184 140

Cleveland 2 4 0 .333 120 154

Pittsburgh 2 4 0 .333 123 131

Cincinnati 0 6 0 .000 97 159

WEST

Kansas City 4 2 0 .667 172 144

Oakland 3 2 0 .600 103 123

Denver 2 4 0 .333 106 106

L.A. Chargers 2 4 0 .333 120 118

NATIONAL CONFERENCE

WLTPct PFPA

EAST

Dallas 3 3 0 .500 153 114

Philadelphia 3 3 0 .500 161 149

N.Y. Giants 2 4 0 .333 111 160

Washington 1 5 0 .167 90 167

SOUTH

New Orleans 5 1 0 .833 128 122

Carolina 4 2 0 .667 166 133

Tampa Bay 2 4 0 .333 173 185

Atlanta 1 5 0 .167 135 186

NORTH

Green Bay 5 1 0 .833 142 115

Minnesota 4 2 0 .667 150 93

Chicago 3 2 0 .600 87 69

Detroit 2 2 1 .500 119 118

WEST

San Francisco 5 0 0 1.000 147 64

Seattle 5 1 0 .833 165 146

L.A. Rams 3 3 0 .500 153 154

Arizona 2 3 1 .417 134 171

WEEKSIX

Byes: Buffalo, Indianapolis, Chicago,

Oakland

Monday

Green Bay 23, Detroit 22

WEEKSEVEN

Byes: Tampa Bay, Cleveland, Carolina,

Pittsburgh

Thursday

All Times Eastern

Kansas City at Denver, 8:20 p.m.

NCAA FOOTBALL

TOP 25

Friday

All Times Eastern

No.4Ohio State at Northwestern, 8:30 p.m.

Saturday

No. 1Alabama vs. Tennessee, 9 p.m.

No. 2LSU at Mississippi State, 3:30 p.m.

No. 3Clemson at Louisville, Noon

No. 5Oklahoma vs. West Virginia, Noon

No. 6Wisconsin at Illinois, Noon

No. 7Penn State vs.No. 16Michigan,

7:30 p.m.

No. 9Florida at South Carolina, Noon

No. 10Georgia vs. Kentucky, 6 p.m.

No. 11Auburn at Arkansas, Noon

No. 12Oregon atNo. 25Washington,

3:30 p.m.

No. 13Utah vs.No. 17Arizona State, 6 p.m.

No. 14Boise State at BYU, 10:15 p.m.

No. 15Texas vs. Kansas, 7 p.m.

No. 18Baylor at Oklahoma State, 4 p.m.

No. 19SMU vs. Temple, 3:30 p.m.

No. 20Minnesota at Rutgers, 3:30 p.m.

No. 21Cincinnati vs. Tulsa, 3:30 p.m.

No. 22Missouri at Vanderbilt, 4 p.m.

No. 23Iowa vs. Purdue, Noon

No. 24Appalachian State vs. Louisiana-

Monroe, 3:30 p.m.

RUGBY

WORLD CUP

At Sites in Japan

PLAYOFFS

QUARTERFINALS

Saturday

All Times Eastern

At Oita

England vs. Australia, 3:15 a.m.

At Tokyo

New Zealand vs. Ireland, 6:15 a.m.

Sunday

At Oita

Wales vs. France, 3:15 a.m.

At Tokyo

Japan vs. South Africa, 6:15 a.m.

SEMIFINALS

At Yokohama City

Saturday, Oct. 26

Teams TBD, 4 a.m.

MLB POSTSEASON

LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

(Best-of-7)
All Times Eastern

AMERICANLEAGUE
HOUSTON VS. N.Y. YANKEES
(Houston leads series 2-1)
Tuesday
Houston 4 N.Y. Yankees 1
Wednesday
Houston at N.Y. Yankees, 8:08 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 17
Houston at N.Y. Yankees, 8:08 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 19
x-N.Y. Yankees at Houston, 4:08 or 8:08 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 20
x-N.Y. Yankees at Houston, 7:38 p.m.

NATIONALLEAGUE

ST. LOUIS VS. WASHINGTON

(Washington leads series 3-0)

Tuesday

St. Louis at Washington

Monday

Washington 8 St. Louis 1

x-Wednesday, Oct. 16

St. Louis at Washington, 4:08 p.m.

x-Friday, Oct. 18

Washington at St. Louis, 8:08 p.m.

x — played if necessary.

NHL

EASTERN CONFERENCE

GP W L OL SLGF GA Pts

ATLANTIC DIVISION

Buffalo 6 5 0 1 0 25 13 11

Boston 6 5 1 0 0 16 10 10

Toronto 7 4 2 0 1 28 24 9

METROPOLITAN DIVISION

Carolina 6 5 1 0 0 24 16 10

Pittsburgh 6 4 2 0 0 25 16 8

Washington 73 2 2 0 22 23 8

WILD CARD

Tampa Bay 63 2 1 0 23 18 7

Detroit 5 3 2 0 0 16 16 6

Montreal 6 2 2 1 1 22 24 6

NY Islanders 63 3 0 0 15 17 6

Florida 6 2 2 0 2 19 24 6

Philadelphia 32 0 0 1 10 6 5

NY Rangers 32 1 0 0 11 9 4

Columbus 5 2 3 0 0 11 18 4

Ottawa 5 1 4 0 0 12 19 2

New Jersey 60 4 0 2 13 29 2

WESTERN CONFERENCE

GP W L OL SLGF GA Pts

CENTRAL DIVISION

Colorado 5 5 0 0 0 22 12 10

St. Louis 6 3 1 2 0 19 20 8

Winnipeg 7 4 3 0 0 24 26 8

PACIFIC DIVISION

Edmonton 65 1 0 0 23 16 10

Anaheim 6 4 2 0 0 13 10 8

Vegas 6 4 2 0 0 24 14 8

WILD CARD

Nashville 5 3 2 0 0 23 21 6

Calgary 6 2 3 1 0 15 20 5

Vancouver 42 2 0 0 13 10 4

Los Angeles 52 3 0 0 20 26 4

San Jose 6 2 4 0 0 13 22 4

Chicago 4 1 2 1 0 12 13 3

Arizona 4 1 2 1 0 7 7 3

Dallas 7 1 5 0 1 13 23 3

Minnesota 61 5 0 0 14 25 2

Note:the top three teams per division

and the two next-best records in the

conference qualify for the playoffs; 2 pts

for a win, 1 pt for loss in OT or SO.

Tuesday

Montreal 3 Tampa Bay 1

Toronto 4 Minnesota 2

Arizona at Winnipeg

Philadelphia at Calgary

Nashville at Vegas

Detroit at Vancouver

Carolina at Los Angeles

Monday

Florida 6 New Jersey 4

NY Islanders 3 St. Louis 2 (OT)

Minnesota 2 Ottawa 0

Boston 4 Anaheim 2

Buffalo 4 Dallas 0

Colorado 6 Washington 3

Chicago 3 Edmonton 1

Wednesday

All Times Eastern

Dallas at Columbus, 7 p.m.

Toronto at Washington, 7 p.m.

Colorado at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.

Philadelphia at Edmonton, 9:30 p.m.

Buffalo at Anaheim, 10 p.m.

Carolina at San Jose, 10:30 p.m.

SCORING LEADERS

GAPts

Leon Draisaitl, Edm 4 8 12

Connor McDavid, Edm 4 8 12

Patrik Laine, Wpg 3 8 11

John Carlson, Wash 2 9 11

David Pastrnak, Bos 6 4 10

Sidney Crosby, Pgh 3 7 10

Mark Scheifele, Wpg 3 7 10

Brad Marchand, Bos 4 5 9

Not including Tuesday’s games

NBA

PRESEASON

Tuesday

Boston 118 Cleveland 95

Philadelphia 106 Detroit 86

Minnesota 119 Indiana 111

Monday

Miami 120 Atlanta 87

Charlotte 120 Memphis 99

Dallas 107 Oklahoma City 70

Sacramento 128 Utah 115

Denver 107 Phoenix 102

L.A. Lakers 104 Golden State 98

Wednesday

All Times Eastern

Detroit at Charlotte, 7 p.m.

Atlanta at New York, 8 p.m.

Memphis at Oklahoma City, 8 p.m.

San Antonio at Houston, 8 p.m.

Portland at Utah, 9 p.m.

Melbourne United at Sacramento, 10 p.m.

Golden State at L.A. Lakers, 10:30 p.m.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

HOUSTON 4,N.Y.YANKEES1
Houston ab r h bi New York ab r h bi
Springer cf-rf 4 0 0 0 LeMahieu 1b 5 0 2 0
Altuve 2b 5 2 2 1 Judge rf 4 0 1 0
Brantley lf 4 1 2 0 Gardner lf 4 0 0 0
Marisnick pr-cf0 0 0 0 Encarnación dh4 0 1 0
Bregman 3b 2 0 0 0 Torres 2b 2 1 1 1
Gurriel 1b 4 0 1 1 Gregorius ss 4 0 0 0
Alvarez dh 3 0 0 0 Sánchez c 4 0 0 0
Correa ss 4 0 0 0 Urshela 3b 3 0 0 0
Reddick rf-lf 4 1 1 1 Hicks cf 2 0 0 0
Maldonado c 4 0 1 0
Totals 34 4 7 3 Totals 32 1 5 1
Houston 110 000 200 4
New York 000 000 010 1
E—Severino (1). LOB—Houston 10,
New York 9. 2B—Maldonado (1),
Encarnación (3). HR—Altuve (4),
Reddick (1), Torres (3). SB—Altuve (1).
SF—Gurriel (1).
Houston IP H R ER BB SO
Cole W,3-0 7 4 00 5 7
Smith 1-3 1 11 0 0
Harris H,2 2-3 0 00 0 0
Osuna S,1-1 1 0 00 0 0
New York
Severino L,0-1 4 1-3 5 22 3 6
Green 2-3 0 00 0 1
Kahnle 1 0 00 0 0
Ottavino 0 1 22 1 0
Britton 1 0 00 1 0
Cessa 2 1 00 0 3
Ottavino pitched to 2 batters in the 7th.
HBP—Cessa (Bregman). WP—Britton.
Umpires—Home, Jeff Nelson; First, Dan
Bellino; Second, Kerwin Danley; Third,
Mark Carlson; Right, Cory Blaser; Left,
Marvin Hudson.
T—3:44. A—48,998 (47,309).
LATE MONDAY

NATIONAL LEAGUE

WASHINGTON 8, ST. LOUIS 1
St.Louis ab r h bi Washington ab r h bi
Fowler cf 4 0 0 0 Turner ss 4 0 0 0
Wong 2b 4 0 0 0 Eaton rf 5 1 1 1
Gldschmdt 1b 4 0 0 0 Rendon 3b 3 2 2 1
Ozuna lf 4 0 2 0 Soto lf 3 1 0 0
J.Martínez rf 4 1 2 0 Kendrick 2b4 2 3 3
Molina c 4 0 1 0 Rodney p 0 0 0 0
Edman 3b 4 0 0 0 Rainey p 0 0 0 0
DeJong ss 3 0 2 0 Zimmerman 1b4 0 2 2
Flaherty p 1 0 0 0 Suzuki c 4 0 1 0
Carpenter ph 1 0 0 0 Robles cf 4 2 2 1
Webb p 0 0 0 0 Strasburg p 1 0 0 0
Brebbia p 0 0 0 0 Dozier 2b 1 0 0 0
G.Cabrera p 0 0 0 0
Wieters ph 1 0 0 0
Ponce de Leon p 0 0 0 0
TTotals 34 1 7 0 Totals 33 8 11 8
St.Louis 000 000 100 1
Washington 004 021 10x 8
E—Soto (1). LOB—St. Louis 6,
Washington 6. 2B—Ozuna (4), Rendon
(4), Kendrick 3 (4), Zimmerman (3).
HR—Robles (1). S—Strasburg 2 (3).
St. Louis IP H R ER BB SO
Flaherty L,1-2 4 5 44 2 6
Webb 2-3 1 11 0 0
Brebbia 2-3 3 22 0 1
G.Cabrera 2-3 0 00 0 0
Ponce de Leon 2 2 11 1 4
Washington
Strasburg W,3-0 7 7 10 0 12
Rodney 1 0 00 0 2
Rainey 1 0 00 0 2
WP—Flaherty.
Umpires—Home, Bill Miller; First, Phil
Cuzzi; Second, Chad Fairchild; Third,
Fieldin Cubreth; Right, Chris Conroy; Left,
Chris Guccione.
T—3:26. A—43,675 (41,313).

LATE MONDAY

GREEN BAY 23, DETROIT 22

Detroit 10 3 6 3—22

Green Bay 0 10 3 10—23

FIRST QUARTER

Det—FG Prater 26, 12:41.

Det—K.Johnson 1 run (Prater kick), 6:35.

SECOND QUARTER

Det—FG Prater 22, 13:28.

GB—J.Williams 5 pass from Rodgers

(M.Crosby kick), 7:31.

GB—FG M.Crosby 37, :07.

THIRD QUARTER

GB—FG M.Crosby 48, 12:35.

Det—FG Prater 41, 9:01.

Det—FG Prater 51, 3:27.

FOURTH QUARTER

Det—FG Prater 54, 12:17.

GB—Lazard 35 pass from Rodgers

(M.Crosby kick), 9:03.

GB—FG M.Crosby 23, :00.

Att.—76,947.

TEAM STATISTICS Det GB

First downs 13 22

Total Net Yards 299 447

Rushes-yards 20-56 29-170

Passing 243 277

Punt Returns 0-0 1-(minus)

Kickoff Returns 2-55 6-96

Interceptions Ret. 1-55 0-0

Comp-Att-Int 18-32-0 24-39-1

Sacked-Yards Lost 3-22 1-6

Punts 4-46.5 3-51.7

Fumbles-Lost 1-0 2-2

Penalties-Yards 8-50 6-48

Time of Possession 26:56 33:04

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—Detroit, K.Johnson 13-34,

Agnew 1-9, Stafford 3-9, McKissic 3-4.

Green Bay, J.Williams 14-104, A.Jones 11-

47, Rodgers 3-10, Valdes-Scantling 1-9.

PASSING—Detroit, Stafford 18-32-0-

265. Green Bay, Rodgers 24-39-1-283.
     RECEIVING—Detroit, Golladay 5-121,
     Hockenson 4-21, K.Johnson 2-27,
     M.Jones 2-17, McKissic 2-7, Hall 1-58,
     James 1-8, Amendola 1-6. Green Bay,
     Lazard 4-65, J.Williams 4-32, A.Jones 4-
     13, Allison 3-40, Lewis 2-50, Valdes-
     Scantling 2-48, Graham 2-17, Kumerow
     2-17, Shepherd 1-1.
     MISSED FIELD GOALS—None.

AHL

Tuesday

Bakersfield at Stockton

Monday

Laval 3 Rockford 1

Wednesday

All Times Eastern

Syracuse at Utica, 7 p.m.

Hershey at Toronto, 7 p.m.

Providence at Laval, 7 p.m.

Binghamton at W-B/Scranton, 7:05 p.m.

SCORING LEADERS

GAPts

T. Boyd, Her 4 2 6

N. Walker, Sa 4 2 6

M. Sgarbossa, Her 3 3 6

OHL

Tuesday— No games scheduled

Monday

Ottawa 8 Kingston 7 (OT)

North Bay 7 Sault Ste. Marie 5

Kitchener 7 Sudbury 3

Hamilton 7 Barrie 5

Wednesday

All Times Eastern

Saginaw at Sault Ste. Marie, 7:07 p.m.

SCORING LEADERS

GAPts

Q.Byfield, Sby 8 12 20

A.Kaliyev, Ham 10 9 19

N.Robertson, Pbo 11 7 18

QMJHL

Tuesday

No games scheduled

Monday

Québec 6 Shawinigan 3

Halifax 4 Charlottetown 1

Sherbrooke 5 Victoriaville 1

Wednesday

All Times Eastern

Charlottetown at Cape Breton, 6 p.m.

Gatineau at Victoriaville, 7 p.m.

Chicoutimi at Drummondville, 7 p.m.

Baie-Comeau at Rimouski, 7:30 p.m.

SCORING LEADERS

GAPts

A. Lafreniere, Rim 8 17 25

C. Pare, Rim 12 8 20

E. Sokolov, Cap 9 10 19

WHL

Tuesday

Lethbridge at Moose Jaw

Saskatoon at Medicine Hat

Swift Current at Kamloops

Monday

Saskatoon 9 Calgary 3

Wednesday

All Times Eastern

Brandon at Everett, 10:05 p.m.

Swift Current at Kelowna, 10:05 p.m.

SCORING LEADERS

GAPts

B. Kindopp, Evt 8 6 14

A. Protas, Pa 6 8 14

C. Zary, Kam 5 9 14

UEFA

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP

QUALIFYING

Tuesday

Finland 3 Armenia 0

Faroe Islands 1 Malta 0

Gibraltar 2 Georgia 3

Greece 2 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1

Israel 3 Latvia 1

Liechtenstein 0 Italy 5

Romania 1 Norway 1

Sweden 1 Spain 1

Switzerland 2 Republic of Ireland 0

CONCACAF

NATIONS LEAGUE

GROUP STAGE

Tuesday

Canada 2 United States 0

El Salvador 2 St. Lucia 0

Barbados 4 US Virgin Islands 0

Jamaica 6 Aruba 0

Dominican Republic 0. Montserrat 0

Cayman Islands 1. St. Martin 0

Anguilla vs. Puerto Rico

Mexico vs. Panama

INTERNATIONAL

FRIENDLY

Algeria 3 Colombia 0

Morocco 2 Gabon 3

Chile 3 Guinea 2

Denmark 4 Luxembourg 0

Peru vs. Uruguay

ENGLAND

EFL TROPHY

GROUP STAGE

Tuesday

Carlisle United 2 Blackpool 1

| REPORTONBUSINESS

“I’m on the road to recovery

still,” Froome said. “I’ve made it

back onto the bike in this last

month, which has been fantastic.

I’m heading in the right direc-

tion.”

In June, just a few weeks be-

fore the Tour start, Froome hit a

wall during a training ride as he

geared up for cycling’s biggest

race.

He underwent a six-hour op-

eration after breaking his right

femur, elbow and several ribs in

the crash that ended his season.

“I’ve still got a plate on my hip

that needs to get removed soon,

and once that comes off I think

things will start to improve a lit-

F

our months after a career-
threatening, high-speed
crash left him with multiple
fractures, Chris Froome has re-
sumed training in the hope that
he can compete for a record-
equaling fifth Tour de France ti-
tle.
Still a bit shaky on his feet, the
Team Ineos leader attended the
2020 race presentation on Tues-
day alongside teammate Egan
Bernal, the 22-year-old prodigy
from Colombia who became the
Tour champion while Froome
was in his sick bed.

tle bit faster,” Froome said.

Froome, who won the Tour de

France in 2013, 2015, 2016 and

2017, could join an elite club of

four riders with five Tour victo-

ries, including Jacques Anquetil,

Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault

and Miguel Indurain.

But time could be a factor for

the Kenya-born athlete. Now 34,

Froome has no guarantees he

will be able to fully recover, and

he is facing strong competition

within his own team with Bernal

and Geraint Thomas, the Welsh-

man who dethroned Froome at

the 2018 Tour.

“We’ve got an amazing line

up, an amazing roster of riders to

select from,” Froome said.

“There is nothing decided yet.

For me, personally, I have obvi-

ously to get myself back to that

level before even discussing

leadership, or anything like that.

At least, for now, everything is

going the right direction. I’m op-

timistic.”

In his quest for a fifth title,

Froome won’t be helped by the

race route.

“But there will be a lot of op-

portunities, really, for the gener-

al classification to play out,” he

said. “It should be an exciting

Tour.”

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SAMUELPETREQUINPARIS

I’vemadeitback

ontothebikeinthis

lastmonth,which

hasbeenfantastic.

I’mheadinginthe

rightdirection.

CHRISFROOME

CYCLIST

‘Ontheroadtorecovery,’Froomeeyes2020Tour