"I couldn’t hold back the tears" - Simon Yates on Giro-winning move on none other than the Colle delle Finestre

Simon Yates dominated the Giro d'Italia back in 2018 until the race arrived at the Colle delle Finestre, where he completely exploded and fell out of the GC fight in a matter of minutes. In 2025, seven years later, the Briton used this climbing to race into a shocking debut victory at the Corsa Rosa.

It is a story that very few others can ever match in this sport, and Yates - who has returned to the Giro year after year - often struggled with the pressure of being the leader and being in a team where he could not often match the collective of rival teams.

In 2025 he came into the Giro very far from top favourite, and was ranked amongst the many outsiders after a spring affected by injuries. He rode the almost perfect race, riding strong in the time-trials, avoiding crashes and illnesses, and keeping himself well positioned whilst the likes of Primoz Roglic, Juan Ayuso and Isaac del Toro had all the spotlight.

Even in the final week, it seemed as if it was all about Richard Carapaz' pursuit of the pink jersey, and in reality Yates lost time to the duo on both stages 17 and 19, which made the goal of winning the Giro a rather distant one this Saturday morning.

"Once the route was released I always had in the back of my mind that I could come here and close a chapter, maybe not to take the jersey and the race, but at least a stage, show myself the way I know I can do," Yates said in an interview with TNT Sports. "To pull it off, I really didn’t believe. I have to thank the guys in my team because they really believed in me, even during the stage".

Yates bridged across to the duo who accelerated harshly right from the base of the Colle delle Finestre, and after a few attacks he managed to create a gap to them. Although there was tactical play behind, in a climb as difficult as this it's all about the legs, and Yates moved into the provisional lead of the race whilst still climbing on the gravel roads.

What followed was a magical moment for Team Visma | Lease a Bike, which combined Wout van Aert's presence in the breakaway with the absence of domestiques for Del Toro and Carapz who would then clash on the descent and not collaborate with each other. Yates got away with several minutes of lead, and the Giro d'Italia's provisional victory. "200 meters 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."

It is the closing of a circle for the 32-year old, who will in Rome tomorrow confirm what will be the most important victory of his career to date. "It’s still sinking in. 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."