Cycling photos of 2015: Tour de France, Vuelta a Espana and more
Last Updated: 28/12/15 2:24pm
Chris Froome follows Vincenzo Nibali at the Tour de France stage 17 (Picture: Doug Pensinger, Getty)
Cycling is always one of the most photogenic sports and more than lived up to that reputation in 2015.
From crashes and dramatic backdrops to extreme weather and iconic moments, the past 12 months have delivered a constant stream of enduring images.
Here, in chronological order, we look back on the best photos of the year...
The inaugural Dubai Tour in February passed by the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building (Picture: Warren Little, Getty)
Strade Bianche in March was once again one of the most picturesque races of the year (Picture: Bryn Lennon, Getty)
The riders had to battle driving snow as well as each other on the key stage of Tirreno-Adriatico in March (Picture: Graham Watson)
Gert Steegmans had to drag himself and his bike out of a stream in a weather-battered edition of Gent-Wevelgem in March (Picture: Eric Lalmand, AFP)
Racing was halted at Paris-Roubaix in April when the barriers of a level crossing came down (Picture: Lionel Bonaventure, AFP)
Sir Bradley Wiggins was unsuccessful in his attempt to win Paris-Roubaix in his final race for Team Sky (Picture: Graham Watson)
Thousands of fans lined the roadsides to see the inaugural Tour de Yorkshire in May (Picture: Barry Wilkinson, SWpix.com)
The Alpine stages of May's Giro d'Italia were stunning (Picture: Graham Watson)
After leaving Team Sky, Wiggins went on to break the UCI Hour Record in June (Picture: Bryn Lennon, Getty)
Wiggins was cheered on by a capacity crowd at the Lee Valley VeloPark in London (Picture: Bryn Lennon, Getty)
June's Tour de Suisse went toe to toe with the Giro for spectacular settings (Picture: Graham Watson)
But arguably the most dramatic road visited in 2015 was the Lacets de Montvernier in both the Criterium du Dauphine and Tour de France (Picture: Eric Feferberg, AFP)
Stage three of the Tour de France was marred by a huge crash that left riders piled up against a lamppost (Picture: Doug Pensinger, Getty)
Race leader Fabian Cancellera was caught up in the carnage and later had to abandon (Picture: Doug Pensinger, Getty)
Chris Froome battles the cobbles on the Tour's fourth stage (Picture: Bryn Lennon, Getty)
Eritrea's Daniel Teklehaimanot became a cult icon at the Tour by wearing the polka dot jersey (Picture: Bryn Lennon, Getty)
Warren Barguil had to be alert to avoid hitting a herd of cows at the Tour (Picture: Doug Pensinger, Getty)
British rider Simon Yates received plenty of support at the Tour (Picture: Bryn Lennon, Getty)
Chris Froome held on in the Alps to win the second Tour of his career (Picture: Doug Pensinger, Getty)
Anna van der Breggen won a rainy edition of La Course by Le Tour in Paris (Picture: Doug Pensinger, Getty)
Coming through! The peloton tackled the steep and narrow Cote de Saint-Roch during August's Eneco Tour (Picture: Graham Watson)
Esteban Chaves' smile and performances lit up August's Vuelta a Espana (Picture: Jose Jordan, AFP)
Peter Sagan's win on stage three of the Vuelta provided one of the most colourful images of the year (Picture: Jose Jordan, AFP)
Tom Dumoulin's face was a picture of disappointment after his bid to win the Vuelta collapsed on the penultimate stage (Picture: Jaime Reina, AFP)
Lizzie Armitstead (right) celebrates with team-mates after winning the women's World Championship road race in September (Picture: Bryn Lennon)
Sagan's breathtaking attack in the men's World Championship road race provided one of the defining images of the year, and his career so far (Picture: Graham Watson)
How about that? Sagan's celebration at the finish line was beautifully understated (Picture: Bryn Lennon, Getty)
