Former Tour de France winner Geraint Thomas has announced his retirement.
The cyclist has confirmed that this year will be his final in the peloton, with his career set to come to an end at this year’s Tour of Britain.
The 38-year-old won the Tour de France in 2018, becoming the third British cyclist, and only Welsh one, to do so.
The Wales National Velodrome was renamed the Geraint Thomas National Velodrome in September 2018.
Other race wins for Thomas include Paris-Nice in 2016, Critérium du Dauphiné in 2018, the Tour de Romandie in 2021 and the Tour de Swisse in 2022.
Thomas also achieved an incredibly close second-place finish in the 2023 Giro d’Italia.
In a post on Instagram on Monday morning, Thomas said he “thought it was time we made it official”.
He said it had “not been a bad run” and that “never in [his] wildest dreams did [he] imagine being a pro for 19 years”.
“There’ll be lots of time to reflect but, before then, I’ve got some big races to prep for.”
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His cycling career began at the age of 10, a hobby he pursued as a member of the Maindy Flyers club in his home city of Cardiff.
The club also boasts other notable alumni, such as Olympic gold medalist Elinor Barker.
On the track, Thomas is a two-time Olympic gold medalist, having formed part of Team GB’s winning men’s team pursuit at both the 2008 and 2012 games.
He was made an OBE in 2019 for services to cycling.
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British Cycling’s performance director, Stephen Park commended Thomas for his “stellar career”.
He said his 2018 Tour de France win would “go down in history” and that he would be “cheering him on over the coming months as he competes in his final season”.
Mr Park said Thomas was “a fantastic role model to the next generation of pro cyclists” and that he had been “a key figurehead in every team he’s been a part of over the years”.
