"The Finestre stage was what got him out of bed every morning": Visma coach recounts Simon Yates' run-up to Giro triumph

Simon Yates wrote one of the most beautiful stories in cycling's recent history with his iconic Giro d'Italia coup. Seven years after his career's greatest heartbreak, the Brit returned to Colle delle Finestre to close the chapter that has been for so long at the back of his mind. And although he didn't win the stage, Yates even more importantly snuck away with the maglia rosa to become a Giro champion of 2025. A career-defining moment that will be remembered in association with Yates' name in years to come as the 33-year-old surprised with a retirement announcement earlier this week.

But how did this success come around? Wieler Revue spoke to his coach, Visma | Lease a Bike's Head of Performance Mathieu Heijboer. The Dutchman played a crucial role in Yates' 2025 success, although Heijboer wasn't even the first choice when the coach of Yates was being decided at the new team.

Heijboer started by pointing out that it wasn't always a fairy tale since the moment Yates landed in the team for the first time in winter. "We hoped he would perform better than a fourteenth-place finish in the Tirreno-Adriatico, but it wasn't surprising. Simon was hit by a car at the training camp in February, which resulted in him spending half a day in the hospital."

From small conflicts regarding communication, through an accident in training. But ultimately every piece of puzzle fell in its place in May. "He had already improved in Catalunya, so he could confidently go into the training camp in April where everything went perfectly. He was also much more at ease at that point than in February."

The showdown on Finestre was always going to be part of Yates' debut season at Visma, as much became clear when Heijboer talked to their new recruit in winter, and it became clear once the route was finally confirmed at the start of the year. "We already talked about the Finestre in December. He'd already mentioned in transfer talks beforehand that he wanted to make up for that missed opportunity in 2018."

"It took on an extra emotional charge when the Finestre turned out to be on the route. It quickly became clear to us that the 2018 setback was a huge motivator for him. When I asked him in December what got him out of bed every day, he very specifically mentioned the stage to the Finestre. That shows how much energy is released when you have such deep-rooted motivation."

Heijboer wasn't personally in Italy for the race, but he followed closely the development of Yates and the entire team. The podium position before final mountain stage would've already been a success in his eyes, but what happened on Finestre had him at a loss of breath.

"Even we couldn't have predicted that Simon would break away from Del Toro and Carapaz, join Wout just after the summit, and then win the Giro d'Italia by a few minutes... What we held on to was that it was the first really long climb where draft didn't play a major role. Simon indicated throughout the race that his explosiveness wasn't optimal, but that he could keep going."

Sure, the Dutchman expected Yates to fly on the mythical climb, but not that he would turn the race upside down that day. "We expected him to at least show something good. Of course, the competition's poker game helped, but Simon managed to pull it off. He delivered his best physical performance of those three weeks when it mattered."

That memorable day, Heijboer was visiting a close friend, but he kept in touch with Sports Director Marc Reef who was in the team car behind Yates the entire stage. "I was in contact with Marc about the situation. At one point, I asked where Wout was, because it wasn't clear to the television viewer. He replied, 'Don't worry, because Wout will come over the top for Simon.'"

"When Wout came into view and took Simon on the luggage rack… Yes, that was the moment of the race. I had goosebumps on my arms, because we knew: now Wout is going to start his engine and then it's over. Yes, I had a few extra beers that night, haha."