British cycling great Chris Froome paid a visit to the Yacht Club de Monaco this week, taking part in an exchange with young participants of the club’s Summer Camps programme.
Froome, a four-time winner of the Tour de France, is one of only a handful of riders in cycling history to have claimed victory at all three Grand Tours, having also won the Vuelta a España and the Giro d’Italia over the course of his career. His visit offered the club’s young sailors a rare chance to spend time with one of the sport’s most decorated champions, discussing his career and experiences at the top level of professional cycling.
The visit comes during a notable comeback chapter for the 41-year-old Briton, who suffered life-threatening injuries in a training crash last September and had not competed since the Tour de Pologne prior to that accident. Froome made a tentative return to action earlier this summer, taking part in The Crossing, a charity pedal-boat race spanning 225 kilometres from Viareggio in Italy to Monaco via the protected waters of the Pelagos Sanctuary, alongside fellow former professionals Filippo Pozzato and Jakob Fuglsang.
The Yacht Club de Monaco’s Summer Camps, part of its broader Seadventure programme, run throughout the school holidays and are open to children and young people looking to build skills on, in and around the water. Alongside sailing instruction on Bug and Topper dinghies, the camps introduce participants to marine biodiversity through snorkelling and sea outings, while a dedicated Summer Yachting Camps programme, delivered through the club’s La Belle Classe Academy, offers 16 to 22 year-olds a more immersive course in navigation and safety at sea.
Founded in 1953 by Prince Rainier III and presided over since 1984 by Prince Albert II, the Yacht Club de Monaco brings together some 2,500 members from 81 nationalities, and continues to position its youth programmes as a cornerstone of its mission to connect new generations with the sea.