"I couldn’t be more grateful for all your support" - Tao Geoghegan Hart shares heartfelt goodbye message to the INEOS Grenadiers

After nearly a decade at Team Sky/INEOS Grenadiers, Tao Geoghegan Hart has departed the British-based team for Lidl-Trek over this transfer window. Now, via his official Instagram account, the former Giro d'Italia winner has shared a farewell message.

"There are no perfect goodbyes in cycling. Often there are no goodbyes at all. Most of the INEOS Grenadiers riders and staff I haven’t seen since March or April," begins the 28-year-old. "In professional cycling we aren’t afforded a moment to say thankyou or to look back on what we’ve done. That’s just the sport, and perhaps a good metaphor for life. People come and go. They are taken from us unexpectedly every day. We picture a perfect way to say goodbye, but it rarely goes quite as we expect."

Having been in top form earlier this year winning the Tour of the Alps and looking really good at the Giro d'Italia, Geoghegan Hart sadly crashed out of the Maglia Rosa battle bringing his season to a very premature end. "A rider’s time in a team seems to almost fizzle out in the winter months, overshadowed by news of new adventures and the future. The world keeps moving forward," Geoghegan Hart continues. "In cycling, there isn’t a clear moment to step from the past to the future, it’s a gradual and mostly unseen change, that has been a new experience for me. Midnight on New Year’s Eve, when our contracts change, is hardly the moment to think about starting a new job. I’m jealous of the way in which other professional athletes can say goodbye to their teams and sponsors before they move on to their next chapter."

"And so since no perfect time exists, it’s time today to say goodbye to the team that’s been my home since 2016," he says. "It’s a goodbye with a h(e)art full of amazing memories, knowledge and rich experiences. Having had the chance to work with so many great people has been a privilege. I’m especially grateful for the organisation’s support during my extensive rehab this year. If I look back at all these photos, the journey from my first training camp with the team in 2014 has been incredibly fulfilling."

The highlight of Geoghegan Hart's time at the INEOS Grenadiers was undoubtedly the 2020 Giro d'Italia. Coming of age, the Brit triumphed ahead of Jai Hindley to become a Grand Tour winner by just 39 seconds.

"Thankyou to all the equipment partners and fans too. I couldn’t be more grateful for all your support. It makes the difference when searching for a raison d’etre in this tricky world of 2023," he concludes. "So arrivederci to all my INEOS Grenadiers colleagues of this season and those of the last years too. Thankyou for all your hard work and companionship, I’ll see you at the races soon."