ANALYSIS | The rise, fall, and rise again of Simon Yates - One of Great Britain's best Grand Tour riders ever

Simon Yates has announced his retirement from professional cycling at age 33, stepping away as one of Britain’s most accomplished Grand Tour riders. Over a 13-year career, the Bury-born racer carved out a unique legacy, including two Grand Tour titles, through dramatic highs and lows on the sport’s biggest stages. He rose from a precocious teen talent on the track to a Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a Espana champion, with his journey marked by both crushing disappointment and triumphant redemption.

As Yates exits the peloton with the reigning Giro champion’s mantle on his shoulders, the story of his career reads like a cycling epic defined by family ties, fierce ambition, and an unyielding drive to “finally pull it off.”

Born in 1992 in Greater Manchester, Simon Yates first made his name on the track. In 2013, he stunned the cycling world by winning a World Championship gold medal in the points race in Minsk at just 20 years old. His talent was visible even earlier: he won a stage at the Tour de l’Avenir in 2011 and then outsprinted stars like Bradley Wiggins and Nairo Quintana on Haytor in the 2013 Tour of Britain while still an amateur. Those performances fast-tracked him into the WorldTour conversation.

Simon and his twin brother Adam turned pro together in 2014 with Australian team Orica–GreenEDGE, having declined an offer from Team Sky that only included Simon. The choice underscored his career-long focus on substance over spotlight. By 2016, Simon finished 6th overall at the Vuelta a España and followed it with a 7th-place finish and the white jersey at the 2017 Tour de France.

A four-month ban in 2016 for a non-intentional doping violation stemming from an asthma inhaler blip threatened to stall his momentum, but Yates quietly returned and continued to rise. Reserved off the bike, he let his racing do the talking.

Simon’s career was closely linked to his brother Adam’s, from their early club days at the Manchester velodrome to riding side by side at Orica–GreenEDGE for six years. Both became elite climbers, but their careers took slightly different shapes. Adam excelled in one-week stage races and hilly classics, while Simon focused on the longer battles of Grand Tours.

Their most public moment of rivalry came in the 2023 Tour de France. In the uphill sprint to the finish of Stage 1 in Bilbao, Adam attacked and noticed the only rider still with him was Simon. “At first I didn’t want to work with him,” Adam admitted. “I asked my team on radio and they said, yeah, go for it.” The brothers worked together before Adam narrowly took the win. “I have a fantastic relationship with my brother so I’m really happy for him and I’ll stick it to him in the coming days,” Simon joked afterward.

When Simon won the Giro in 2025, Adam, now riding for Isaac Del Toro at UAE, was quick to show his admiration. “If anyone was going to win other than us, my favourite to win is Simon,” he said. “He’s tried many times and come up short, but he finally managed to pull it off, so chapeau.” Reflecting on his brother’s record, Adam added: “He’s not a bad bike rider... Two Grand Tours – not many people have done that, I guess. I need to find one first of all, never mind catching up.”

In May 2018, Simon Yates arrived at the Giro d’Italia ready to compete for the overall. By Stage 6, he had taken the maglia rosa on Mount Etna and held it for 13 days. His racing was bold and relentless: he attacked to win three mountain stages and held a 28-second lead by the end of the second week.

Then came the Colle delle Finestre.

On Stage 19, under pressure from Chris Froome’s long-range attack, Yates cracked. His lead disappeared rapidly. “I was extremely exhausted and I gave everything today,” he said at the finish. “I tried to manage… but then it was blowing out really quickly and I had nothing to give. I’m just really, really exhausted and that’s how it is.” The day ended with Yates dropping to 17th place after losing nearly 40 minutes. “It was the hardest day of my life.”

Yet he didn’t let the collapse define him. “But I’ll be back. I’ll be back to win some day.” Even in pain, Yates looked forward. “I don’t have any regrets… nobody would have betted on me to win the Giro at the start. I’m very proud of what I’ve done.” Teammate Jack Haig echoed that message: “There’s not many people who can lead a Grand Tour for as long as he did and take as many stage wins… There’s another Giro next year.”

It didn’t take that long. Just four months later, Yates lined up at the Vuelta a España with quiet determination. He rode with more control, choosing his moments carefully. The strategy paid off. He took the red jersey in Madrid for his first Grand Tour win.

“It’s a really unbelievable experience,” he said. “You know, I was even nervous today coming into the circuit. Anything could happen, but now I finally pull it off, it’s unbelievable.” Reflecting on his journey from heartbreak to glory, he added, “It took a long time to really get over that, but I came here with renewed motivation and I finally pulled it off.”

It was a career-defining moment and a significant milestone for British cycling, completing a sweep of the 2018 Grand Tours by British riders.

Still, the Giro remained unfinished business. Yates returned repeatedly, coming close in 2021 with third place on the podium and taking stage wins in later years. But injury, illness, and misfortune always seemed to intervene.

Then came 2025. At age 32 and now riding for Team Visma | Lease a Bike, Yates approached what would be his last Giro with sharp focus and veteran savvy. The route was fitting: Stage 20 featured the Colle delle Finestre, the climb that had shattered his 2018 ambitions. “I’ve never ridden it since [2018]… it will maybe be emotional to be back. It’s a moment in my career that’s ever present, let’s say,” he said before the race.

Sitting third overall going into the final weekend, Yates attacked on the Finestre with 40km to go, dropped Carapaz and Del Toro, and stormed into the virtual lead. With Carapaz and Del Toro trapped looking at each other, they failed to truly recognise the threat of Simon Yates until it was too late.

Wout van Aert, riding in the break, dropped back to support him. “Such a brave effort from Simon to go all in from so far,” Van Aert said. “I love it when people are not racing for a place of honour. Chapeau to him.”

Yates gained nearly four minutes by the finish at Sestriere and took the pink jersey for good. The next day in Rome, it was official.

“It’s still sinking in,” he said, wiping his eyes. “I’m not an emotional person, but I couldn’t hold back the tears. This is something I’ve worked towards throughout my career, year after year. There have been a lot of setbacks, so yeah, finally managed to pull it off.” He later added, “[With] 200m to go, I was on the radio asking for the time gap, because I never truly believed until the very last moment, I’m speechless really.”

Cycling writer Adam Becket summed it up best: “From pain to glory… Yates returning to the scene of his most infamous collapse, and turning it completely around, was ripe for the page. It was real, though – the redemptive arc saw the rider not just banish his demons… but well and truly exorcise them.”

Winning the Giro proved to be one of the final act of Yates’s racing career. He rode at the Tour de France in 2025 for Jonas Vingegaard, and picked up a stage win himself, but it is his Giro redemption that will be seen as his true final act. With 36 career wins and 11 Grand Tour stage victories, he stands as only the second British rider after Chris Froome to win more than one Grand Tour. “He’s not a bad bike rider. Two Grand Tours – not many people have done that,”his brother Adam Yates said with a grin.

Known for his patient yet explosive riding style, Simon was a quiet presence off the bike and a clinical attacker on it. “Simon was an exceptional climber and general classification rider who always delivered when it mattered most,” said Visma team directeur Grischa Niermann. “In the Giro, he peaked at a moment when almost no one expected him to be able to win anymore, which truly characterizes him as a rider.”

In January 2026, he retired abruptly. “It is not a decision I have made lightly. I have been thinking about it for a long time,” he told fans. In his farewell message, he closed with: “I step away from professional cycling with deep pride and a sense of peace. This chapter has given me more than I ever imagined. Memories and moments that will stay with me long after the racing ends and for whatever comes next. Thank you for the journey.”