"All I felt was pain" - Brutal prologue worth it for World Tour victory debutant Samuel Watson
Cycling
INEOS Grenadiers have found a true talent in Sam Watson who over the first months of the 2025 season has shown a lot of talent on the hilly terrain, classics and sprints. As it turns out, he is a man who can also thrive in the prologues, as he today took the opening victory of the Tour de Romandie - his first at the highest level of the sport, and his first with the British team.
"I really didn’t expect this at all, to be completely honest. Yesterday I was training in Andorra, an hour and a half from home, when I got a call from the team. I had to get to the airport as quickly as I could, because I would be racing in Romandie the next day," he admits in a post-race interview.
In the middle of a fully chaotic day, the Briton thrived, as he managed to take the win in the 3.4-kilometer prologue in Saint-Imier. "Here I am with the victory in my pocket. That is very special". The course was very technical and explosive, so it didn't favour specific riders. Watson was the one who took full advantage of it.
But it certainly was no easy feat, despite the short distances. "All I felt was pain. I didn’t even know I had the fastest time, until the first interview. That was quite a surprise. I really only feel pain at the moment. I think it's not really there yet. F*ck… To say that I have my first WorldTour win, and also my first win with INEOS, is really a dream," he adds.
In the next days, he can also potentially keep the yellow jersey that he took on his shoulders this afternoon: "Today I came out of a pretty tough three-day training block, so today really gave me confidence. We can go into the coming days with confidence, days that should suit me well on paper".
WAT 50 N
— INEOS Grenadiers (@INEOSGrenadiers) April 29, 2025
After pulling on the yellow jersey at #TDR2025, @samuel_wats0n becomes the 50th different rider to lead a stage race in our history 👊 pic.twitter.com/P133wq808e
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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