"I saw a lot of faces up there that I recognised" - Geraint Thomas enjoyed his last mountain finish

The career of Geraint Thomas comes to a wrap on Sunday. In the penultimate stage of the 2025 Tour of Britain, the Welshman contested his last big mountain. In what can be considered a rather leisurely pace, Thomas crossed the line in a 61st place, seven minutes behind the front of the race, accompanied by two teammates.

How was it out there today? "It was really nice. It was quite emotional, actually," Thomas told the assembled media. "First, I just tried to keep the boys at the front, and it’s a two-edged sword because you don’t have great legs, and you’re working before the climb, and then you hit the climb and you think ‘oh my god’, but the crowds were amazing, and I came back to try and help the boys again and then I really enjoyed it the last time up there again. It was a special day."

What was going through your mind leading into the final climb? "Just how much it hurt. I was just trying to stay there for as long as possible. Once I stopped, I just tried to recover. Then I had Ben Swift around, Sam Watson came back as well, and it was just nice to ride up together and soak up the atmosphere. I saw a lot of faces up there that I recognised, which was really nice."

"Coming up the climb, it was mad. It felt like every person on there was cheering for me. Which was crazy. I saw a lot of friends and family, and it was a super nice way to finish my penultimate day. One more day… It’s going to be a nice day."

The overall leader Romain Grégoire finished fifth on The Tumble, at the same time as stage winner Remco Evenepoel. Therefore the leader of Groupama - FDJ continues in the leader's green jersey with one stage left to race.

"The team did an amazing job the whole day," Grégoire told CyclingUpToDate after the fifth stage. "We were solo to work and they did an amazing job. On the final climb I fought to the finish, it wasn't easy to follow the group but I did it and I'm still in the leader's jersey so I'm really happy.

How tough was the climb itself? The riders had to conquer it twice on the stage. "It was really hard. The bottom was really steep. Then the final kilometer it was easier - that saved me. It was a really nice climb and a really nice race."

The Frenchman finds himself two seconds ahead of Remco Evenepoel who closed the gap to Grégoire with his victory today. "I'm in a good position. It's better to be in front than behind," he notes. "It's going to be a big fight tomorrow. I'll just try to keep it."

Unlike the stage 5, the final day in UK won't place serious climbing challenges in front of riders. It's supposed to be wet tomorrow on the arrival to Cardiff. "I'll just enjoy the night with the jersey and we'll see tomorrow for the next stage."