Sir Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky) will miss the Tour de France ‘as things stand’ according to an interview he gave on BBC Breakfast this morning – so what now for the hero of 2012?

Wiggins had stated after last month’s Tour of California triumph he hoped to be part of Chris Froome’s support squad when the 101st Tour de France departs from Leeds on July 5.

However, with tensions still evident between the two after their very public falling out in 2012, doubts were raised as to whether Wiggins would be part of the team when he was left out of Sky’s Criterium du Dauphine squad.

Furthermore, interviews by Froome talked up the importance of ‘team dynamic’ and the Kenyan-born Brit admitted at the weekend he had not spoken to Wiggins since the team’s training camp in Mallorca.

The writing, it is fair to say, was on the wall – and was certainly not going to fade with the publication and promotion of Froome’s autobiography.

And now, it would seem, the inevitable will happen and British fans will be denied the chance to see their two Tour de France champions riding side-by-side on English roads at the Tour.

Having admitted he is ‘gutted’ not to be a part of the plans for this year’s Tour, it raises speculation as to where Britain’s most decorated Olympian will turn next.

We have taken a closer look at some of the options available to him over the following pages.