Tour de France champion Froome to race in London

The 31-year-old clinched his third Tour de France victory on Sunday to become the first rider to defend his title since Spain's Miguel Indurain won the last of his five consecutive crowns in 1995. The Briton won his first Tour in 2013.

(Reuters)

Froome will headline a Team Sky squad which includes Geraint Thomas, Ian Stannard, Ben Swift, Christian Knees and Dutch sprinter Danny van Poppel in the world's richest one-day race over a 200 km route on the roads of London and Surrey.

"We are thrilled to have Tour de France champion Chris Froome riding for Team Sky at this year's RideLondon-Surrey Classic," race director Mick Bennett said in a statement.

"His performance over the last three weeks has enthralled the country and we are proud Chris has chosen the Classic as his last race before Rio."

"Now British fans have the chance to watch him in action and cheer on the man who has achieved the incredible feat of three Tour de France wins."

German sprinter Andre Greipel, who won the final stage of the Tour in Paris, Michael Matthews of Orica-Bike Exchange and Tom Boonen of Etixx-Quick Step will also participate in the race.

(Reporting by Nivedita Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by John O'Brien)