The four-time Tour de France winner may be under investigation for returning an adverse drugs test at last year's Vuelta a España, but Team Sky has pushed on regardless, naming him to their squad for next week's Ruta del Sol.
"I'm confident that we will be able to get to the bottom of what has happened and I'm working hard with the team to do that," Froome said in the statement announcing the news.
"Obviously, I understand that this situation has created a lot of uncertainty. I completely get why there has been so much interest and speculation."
Um, not sure Froomey does completely get it. Here's just some of the reactions from t'internet to the news:
Read the room, Team Sky, read the room. Here's five things a little less clueless than Team Sky right now.
1. The clueless girls in Clueless
Source: Supplied
Source: Supplied
2. Not posting your epic training rides to Strava when you haven't posted in a long time
Froomey's been rather active on Strava the last month or so logging over 5,000 kilometres, one thousand of them in just the first week of January.
It, of course, led to rumours and speculation - the main one doing the rounds: Froomey was trying to recreate the conditions at the Vuelta and how his body processed salbutamol.
Even if it doesn't lead to such speculation, it seems... I want to say...a little arrogant.
"I have put in a hard training block in January," Froome said in the Ruta del Sol announcement. "It's been good to be out on my bike and to get the miles under my belt."
Look away everyone, nothing to see here.
3. The UCI boss
"Team Sky should suspend Froome," Lappartient told daily Le Telegramme.
"However, it is not up to me to interfere. Without going into the question of guilt, it would be simpler for everyone," said the Frenchman, who was elected last September.
We all know UCI presidents have perhaps been a little clueless in the past when it comes to anti-doping and a range of other issues. And perhaps you could say the current boss speaking out against an existing UCI rule which states Froomey can ride isn't the wisest of moves.
Nope, actually, you win this one Froomey/Team Sky.
4. Discussions about the real issues
Ever since news of Froomey's adverse finding first dropped, and even now overnight, discussions online and on social media have ensued about whether the finding should've leaked or not, and it being OK for Froome to ride.
Sure, UCI's rules state he can ride. Also, Sky isn't signed up to the MPCC (Movement for Credible Cycling) where member teams must automatically suspend a rider from competition after a positive test or adverse finding. And maybe it shouldn't have leaked. These are of course .
But we are where we are.
And as a result, these discussions now feel a little clueless - they simply aren't the most important things we should take away from this incident.
How about: why was that amount in his system? Will we get the real answer or just some excuse?
What edge is a guilty rider (and I'm not saying Froome is!) looking for with salbutamol and why, especially when we're probably talking about only a few seconds, not minutes?
Therefore, what sort of a culture still persists in cycling and why? Do we need to lower our expectations?
Are Team Sky and Froomey transparent and will we ever get an honest answer? If not, why not?
Because promises were once made that could never be expected to be kept in the culture of professional cycling and anything else perhaps embarrassingly backtracks from that original position?
Well, look where we are now anyway.
