Froome awarded 2011 Vuelta title as Cobo is stripped of victory
Almost eight years after the race took place, Chris Froome has been retrospectively named as the winner of the 2011 Vuelta a España.
Chris Froome has been awarded victory in the 2011 Vuelta a España after the International Cycling Union (UCI) confirmed the suspension of original winner Juan José Cobo for a doping offence.
Cobo was found guilty of a violation of the UCI's anti-doping rules based on irregularities found in his biological passport in 2009 and 2011.
A three-year ban for Cobo has been confirmed after a deadline for the now-retired rider to appeal expired.
As a result, the Spaniard has been disqualified from the 2011 Vuelta - along with the 2009 Vuelta and UCI road world championships of the same year - meaning Froome has been retrospectively awarded his seventh Grand Tour title.
Froome: "The Vuelta in 2011 was my breakthrough race"
Froome, who is absent from the ongoing Tour de France after sustaining serious injuries in a recent crash, welcomed the news in a statement released by Team INEOS.
"The Vuelta in 2011 was in many ways my breakthrough race, so this red jersey is special for me. I guess it's extra special too, because - even though it's eight years on - it was Britain's first Grand Tour win [before Bradley Wiggins won the 2012 Tour de France]," said Froome.
"The Vuelta is a race I love and I have always felt a great connection with it and the Spanish fans."