"If my maths is correct, I’ll be starting my 241st Tour stage tomorrow" - Veteran Geraint Thomas set for 13th Tour de France grand depart, 17 years after his debut
CyclingFriday, 28 June 2024 at 20:00
One of the most experienced riders in the peloton at the 2024 Tour de France, the 38-year-old Geraint Thomas will soon be embarking on the 13th Grand Depart of his lengthy career amongst the sport's elite riders.
"If my maths is correct, I’ll be starting my 241st Tour stage tomorrow," the Welshman writes on his official social media ahead of the opening of the 111th Tour de France on Saturday. "And trust me, they don’t get any easier. But the emotions never change and I can’t wait for it. I hope you all enjoy the next three weeks. My 13th Tour coming right up."
Making his Grand Tour debut at the 2007 Tour de France for Barloworld, it wasn't until three years later, then riding for Team Sky that Thomas first left his mark on cycling's showpiece event. Finishing 2nd on stage 3 behind Thor Hushovd, Thomas moved into the White Jersey of Best Young Rider, holding the jersey for 4 days, a feat he would beat a year later, when he wore the White Jersey for six days in 2011.
Undoubtedly Thomas' career best performance came at the 2018 edition of the Tour de France. After being consigned to super domestique duty in service of Chris Froome for the years prior, Thomas got his own chance in 2018 and boy did he make the most of it. With Froome attempting to win his 4th successive Grand Tour (after Tour 2017, Vuelta 2017 & Giro 2018 wins ed.), Thomas emerged as the strongest rider in the then-named Team Sky.
Thomas (L) and Froome (R) gave Team Sky two riders on the podium at the 2018 Tour de France
Thomas took the win on stage 11 in La Rosière Espace San Bernardo, gaining 20 seconds on main rival Tom Dumoulin and moving into the Maillot Jaune in the process. The following stage, Thomas was at it again, winning atop the mythical Alpe d'Huez and further strengthening his overall lead of the race. In the end, despite the best efforts of Dumoulin, there was no stopping the Welshman, who secured the Maillot Jaune and his first - and so far only - Grand Tour triumph.
At the 2024 Tour de France, it looks like being a revert back to domestique duty for Thomas as INEOS Grenadiers punt for Carlos Rodriguez as the team's main GC hopeful. Thomas, who is still showing good legs, taking a podium home from the Giro d'Italia earlier this year, may yet play a role in the podium fight at this Grand Tour. Could we also see the Brit turn super leadout again to help his compatriot and former teammate Mark Cavendish's attempt to take a record breaking 35th Tour de France stage win?
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- What a great ride that day, and what a great young rider. I am really looking forward to what he'll do next, and his attitude about racing is great. Let's hope he keeps that.RidesHills08-11-2024
- everyone should TRY to remember that just a year ago it was pascal the couldn’t remotely hang with vingegaard at the tour. the explanation for that was that pog had injured his wrist and that had interfered with his preparation. compare what a damaged wrist would do to your prep vs. what happened to vingegaard. i think a 100% healthy pogacar vs. a 100% healthy vingegaard at the tour is just about even money. hopefully that’s what we’ll get.OCexile08-11-2024
- i still believe that a thoroughly healthy jonas is at least a match for pogačar. i think some of tadej’s new aura of crushing invincibility comes from a year when everything lined up for him just right. to be clear, i’m NOT saying he’s not the most gifted rider on the planet! he IS! but… liége is made for him; there was NOBODY at the giro to challenge; jonas, for all his spirit, was broken and a shell of his true self at the tour. the Worlds course was a perfect fit for this year for pog, where slimmed down but still MUCH bigger van der poel still kept the gap under a minute in a course that REALLY didn’t suit HIM. my point is that i actually don’t think tadej suddenly launched himself to a level of ability far, far above where he’d been before. he’s a great rider that had an historically great year, but i don’t believe he’s become something NEW, and UNBEATABLE. if he’s fully healthy, i really expect jonas to be as much of a handful for pog as pog is for him.OCexile08-11-2024
- seriously, ESPECIALLY when paired with each other. when they put bob with phil, it’s like bob KNOWS he needs to tighten everything up because phil (god bless him) is losing his marbles. bob is actually pretty GOOD when he’s on phil duty. and when they took vande velde OUT of the booth with bob an put him on the back of a motorcycle, he was suddenly smart and edgy again. put those two guys TOGETHER though, and bob suddenly becomes the dumbest, sloppiest, most ill-informed pogacar and van aert fanboy on the planet, unleashing a constant stream of dim-witted, chuckling hyperbole, and christian is his enabling toady. yuk. after GCN folded i had to listen to wayyyy to much of their “dumb and dumber” show. they must be separated forever.OCexile08-11-2024
- Good news. Cycling world at least doesn't have rampant racism. But, I think it is partly because it is hard to dislike Biniam. He seems like a jolly good person even though he's a sprinter. Some sprinters are very aggressive/cocky.
KerisVroom08-11-2024 - Good news. Cycling world at least doesn't have rampant racism. But, I think it is partly because it is hard to dislike Biniam. He seems like a jolly good person even though he's a sprinter. Some sprinters are very aggressive/cocky.KerisVroom08-11-2024
- It will be a great race until the stage where it's not. Jonas can only hope for injury or illness to Pogacar. And Remco? There's no training, food, or technology that going to grant him 9 extra minutes in this race.Sweep08-11-2024
- It looks like someone is having a hard time understanding the concept of cause and effect. Perhaps Eli can enlighten us as to what the lowest and worst thing is that can happen IN a race, by a competitor.
santiagobenites08-11-2024 - What!! 5 million for a martinez and a Remco and Vingegaard as well. Something is seriously wrong. Should be 5 mil in 3 years probably.abstractengineer08-11-2024
- Remco could definitely lose a couple kilograms. That would help him a lot if he can keep his sustained power which is likely at his age. Above all else though, he needs support. He would have definitely been second if he had Jonas' supportVeganpotter08-11-2024