Paris--The prospect of the fantastic four lining up to contest what could be the most exciting Tour de France in years has whet the appetite of cycling fans since Vincenzo Nibali's dominant victory last year.
That too was supposed to produce a battle royale between three strong pretenders.
But Nibali's tour de force on the cobbles to take the Tour by the scruff of the neck, coupled with crashes that deprived the Grand Boucle of its two biggest stars, Chris Froome and Alberto Contador, resulted in a race that was devoid of suspense long before the Italian rode into Paris in yellow.
Twelve months ago, Nibali was considered more of a strong outsider than an absolute favourite.
But the nature of his victory, and some of the tactical acumen he's shown this season, suggest that there is no reason to consider him anything other than on an equal footing with his peers.
Froome, due to the dominance of his Team Sky in 2012, when Bradley Wiggins won, and his own 2013 triumph, is perhaps always going to be seen as a slight notch ahead of his rivals.
His victories in summit finishes at Ax 3 Domaines and Mont Ventoux, where he rode away from the opposition in his ungainly and un-aerodynamic style, with elbows and knees seemingly dancing around outside the line of his bike as if being tugged by a puppeteer, left many stunned.
On his day, Froome, 30, is considered unbeatable, but he showed weakness last year, not least in his slow recovery from crashes.
The cobbles are back this year and Froome had climbed off his bike even before reaching them 12 months ago.
He was nervous about them then, and his nerves will not have calmed in the intervening period.
AFP
