Tom Pidcock is reluctant to call it a target but the opportunity to take the yellow jersey on the opening weekend of this year’s Tour de France has not escaped his notice.

The 23-year-old will race his second Tour this July, and said his goal is to do better than he did on debut last summer.

That might seem a lofty ambition given how Pidcock stormed to a stunning solo stage victory on the Alpe d’Huez, the descending skills with which he escaped his breakaway companions still talked of with awe.

But it would get even more attention if the Ineos Grenadiers rider enjoyed a spell in yellow, and a lumpy opening stage in the Basque Country offers a rider of Pidcock’s talents a chance.

“I think it is (an opportunity), yeah,” he told the PA news agency. “It’s a possibility and something that I am aware is a possibility. I think the first stage of the Tour is one that can be treated like a one-day classic, it’s going to be a super-hard day.”

When told that sounds non-committal, Pidcock quickly adds: “I’m just playing it down.”

Pidcock, who proved his one-day credentials at Strade Bianche in March, is far from alone in eyeing that opening stage, but he has other goals in July too.

He wants to show greater consistency in the general classification, and also to win a stage from the main bunch rather than a break.

“Last year I was going to the Tour two months after being ill in the spring and then getting Covid, it was not the perfect lead in,” he said. “I think this year I’m stronger and I can do better, basically.”

Pidcock is certainly riding high on the back of his recent spell on the mountain bike.

The Olympic champion took two victories from the World Cup round in Novo Mesto, first storming from last to first to win a short track race he only learned he was riding with a couple of hours’ notice, then recovering from a lap-five crash to win the cross-country race.

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It came after he finished second in Liege-Bastogne-Liege and third in the Amstel Gold Race at the end of April.

The run of form is affirmation for the work Pidcock did in the winter, when he chose not to defend his cyclo-cross world title but instead focus on conditioning.

Although a crash at Tirreno-Adriatico in late March punched a hole in some of his ambitions, the core fitness remains.

“Definitely I feel I’m a bit more robust and certainly at a higher level and I have been for longer and I think that’s partly from the extra time spent building a base preparing,” he said. “I think that’s only going to carry into the rest of the season.”

Throughout his young career to date, the Yorkshireman has juggled the demands of road, mountain bike and cross, but always knew there would come a time when something had to give. This season has shown how that might look.

“I think if I want to achieve the goals I do on the road, certainly there are going to have to be sacrifices in other disciplines,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean they don’t contribute and help with those ambitions.”

There are likely to be sacrifices too at August’s World Championships in Scotland, where the first combined multi-discipline championships is creating dilemmas for several athletes given the schedule clashes.

Pidcock plans to race his mountain bike, so is strongly leading towards skipping the road race which comes first and could come at a cost.

“I don’t want to do both and go home with nothing,” he said. “I’d want to ride the road race because it’s a home race and it will be a super nice experience and I think the worlds is a very special particular race where you never know what will happen.

“It wouldn’t be a bad thing to ride, I want to ride, but would it be the best thing? I don’t know.”

:: Tom Pidcock is a Red Bull athlete. Watch him appear in ‘Race Tapes‘, the new Red Bull series that delves into the lives of the world’s leading riders across all disciplines.

Mark Cavendish won the final stage of his last Giro d’Italia to spark scenes of huge emotion in Rome as Primoz Roglic confirmed his overall victory.

Cavendish, who announced on the second rest day of this race that this season would be his last, made it look easy as he opened up several bike lengths over Alex Kirsch and Fernando Gaviria even before a crash on the final approach split the bunch.

It was a 17th career Giro stage win for the 38-year-old Manxman, who kept alive his record of winning at least one stage every time he had taken part in the Italian Grand Tour.

It was also Cavendish’s first win of the season and first with the Astana-Qazaqstan team, a timely confidence boost as he now turns his attentions to the Tour de France and his bid to take the stage win record there outright.

Astana may not have the greatest sprint pedigree or a lead-out train for Cavendish, but that hardly mattered when he had Geraint Thomas – who lost the pink jersey to Roglic on Saturday’s time trial – lending a hand, the Ineos Grenadiers rider offering a lead-out going into the final two kilometres.

The oldest ever stage winner in Giro history was a hugely popular one as Roglic and Thomas were quick to offer their congratulations.

Roglic takes the overall win by 14 seconds from Thomas, the fourth smallest margin of victory in Giro history.

Emily Bridges has condemned British Cycling’s new policy barring transgender athletes from competing as women as a “violent act” and called the governing body a “failed organisation”.

Bridges, who came out as a transgender woman in October 2020, has been at the centre of the debate after British Cycling suspended its previous policy amid the controversy sparked when she sought to race as a woman at the national omnium championships last year.

The new policy creates a new ‘open’ category in which transgender women, transgender men, non-binary individuals and those whose sex was assigned male at birth will be eligible to compete, with the ‘female’ category reserved for those assigned female at birth and transgender men yet to begin hormone therapy.

In a lengthy statement posted on social media, Bridges said British Cycling “have no authority to control this conversation anymore”.

“British Cycling is a failed organisation, the racing scene is dying under your watch and all you do is take money from petrochemical companies and engage in culture wars,” she wrote.

“You don’t care about making sport more diverse, you want to make yourself look better and you’re even failing at that. Cycling is still one of the whitest, straightest sports out there, and you couldn’t care less.”

British Cycling said its new policy was based on a consultation with riders and stakeholders, a review of available medical research conducted by chief medical officer Dr Nigel Jones, and legal advice.

Bridges has previously said she has been part of research herself which she said showed she did not retain an advantage after hormone replacement therapy.

Her statement on Friday added: “I agree that there needs to be a nuanced policy discussion and continue to conduct research, but this hasn’t happened.

“Research isn’t being viewed critically, or any discussion about the relevance of the data to specific sports.

“Any discussion is inherently political and driven by bad faith actors, and the whole discussion is framed by the media who are driven through engagement by hate and funding from far-right ultra-capitalists.

“I’ve given my body up to science for the last two years, and this data will be out soon. There is actual, relevant data coming soon and discussions need to be had.”

Bridges, who was previously part of the Great Britain academy with designs on competing at the Paris Olympics, said she was now questioning her future in the sport.

“I don’t even know if I want to race my bike any more, the danger and everything that would come with racing makes it a pretty hard thing to justify to myself,” she wrote.

“But you have no right on telling me when I am done. This is my decision and mine alone.

“Yeah, I might be speaking strongly at the moment, but this is my reality right now. It is literally a fight for survival for me and my family at the moment.”

British Cycling declined to respond to Bridges’ statement.

British Cycling will prevent riders who were born male from racing in elite female events under a new transgender and non-binary participation policy published on Friday.

The governing body’s new rules for competitive events, due to be implemented later this year, will see racing split into “open” and “female” categories, with transgender women, transgender men, non-binary individuals and those whose sex was assigned male at birth eligible to compete in the open category.

The female category will remain for those whose sex was assigned female at birth, and transgender men who are yet to begin hormone therapy.

The current men’s category will be consolidated into the open category, in which those whose sex was assigned as female at birth can also compete if they so wish.

British Cycling suspended its previous policy last April amid controversy after transgender woman Emily Bridges sought to race at the national omnium championships as a female rider.

The governing body’s new chief executive Jon Dutton, who has been in post for one month, said he was “sorry” for the anxiety and upset caused during the 13 months since.

The policy is the result of a nine-month review which included a consultation process with riders and stakeholders, including members of the Great Britain team, as well as a study of available medical research led by British Cycling’s chief medical officer Dr Nigel Jones.

That research was said to show a clear performance advantage for individuals who go through puberty as a male, and one which cannot be fully mitigated by testosterone suppression.

British Cycling’s previous transgender policy allowed riders to compete in the female category if they had testosterone levels below five nanomoles per litre for a 12-month period prior to competition.

The governing body will continue to study new research as it becomes available with the policy being regularly reviewed.

Dutton said the driving force behind the competitive policy was “fairness”, while a non-competitive policy that keeps club rides, coaching programmes and other activities open to all was driven by “inclusivity”.

“It’s an incredibly emotive and at times divisive subject area,” Dutton said.

“We have taken many months to look at three areas: firstly a consultation with the athletes affected and the wider cycling community; secondly looking at the medical research available at this point in time; and thirdly from the legal viewpoint in terms of the association with the Equalities Act.

“We’ve made a decision on the balance of all three to give clarity, to give direction and that clear way forward for any athletes affected.”

British Cycling has sought to contact affected athletes prior to publication of the new policy, with Dutton saying support would be offered to those whose route to competing at an elite level may now be closed.

“We accept that and understand that, and that’s why we need to continue to support those affected,” he added.

“I am sorry it has taken so long to get to this point and for the upset and anxiety some people have had to go through but I accept this is a difficult moment for a number of people directly affected.”

There is still no set date for the new regulations to be implemented, with the governing body saying only that it will be before the end of the year, allowing time for changes to technical regulations and discussions with the UCI regarding implementation.

The new policy diverges from that of the world governing body, which promised to look again at its own regulations after American transgender woman Austin Killips won the Tour of the Gila in New Mexico earlier this month.

The UCI allows transgender women who have gone through male puberty to compete in elite women’s events if they have had reduced testosterone levels of 2.5 nanomoles per litre for the previous two years.

The UCI reopened its consultation with athletes and national federations with the aim of reporting by August when the UCI management committee will meet during the world championships in Glasgow.

Birthday boy Geraint Thomas strengthened his grip on the leader’s pink jersey as Filippo Zana left Thibaut Pinot with a broken heart once again on stage 18 of the Giro d’Italia.

Thomas was able to follow a late move from Primoz Roglic on the approach to Val di Zoldo as Joao Almeida dropped back, and the two then worked together to keep the Portuguese behind and take 20 seconds out of him, enough to see Roglic move up to second.

With one mountain stage to come and a mountainous time trial before Sunday’s finale in Rome, Thomas leads by 29 seconds from Roglic with Almeida 39 seconds in arrears.

“It was a decent day,” Thomas said. “To gain time on Almeida and not get dropped by Primoz, it was a good day, a solid day for sure. I felt pretty good, pretty in control.

“Primoz, he likes to go hard, then take it easy, then go hard. I gave him a few turns, then I wasn’t sure how he was feeling. In the last two kilometres he really squeezed on it again, he was super strong, but I was pretty happy with how it was.

“Obviously it’s nice (to gain time) but Primoz had a bad day the other day and Almeida did today. I’ve just got to keep being consistent day by day, climb by climb.”

The pink jersey crossed the line a little under two minutes after Italian champion Zana sprinted clear of Pinot, who for a second time in a week came within a few metres of a first career Giro stage win in his final appearance in the race.

The leading duo had been part of a six-strong breakaway group who were allowed an advantage of up to six minutes on the 161km stage from Oderzo, but eyes were always further back on the first of the mountainous trio of stages that will decide who wears pink in Rome.

Thomas, donning the leader’s jersey on his 37th birthday as he aims to become the race’s oldest ever winner, was clearly in confident mood as his Ineos Grenadiers team-mates drilled the pace on the front of the peloton.

They quickly shed several riders as the road ramped up inside the final 30 kilometres, first on the Forcella Cibiana, then on the steep slopes of the Forno di Zoldo.

There were question marks over Roglic’s form after he lost time on Tuesday’s stage 16 – a day when Almeida and Thomas rode away – but as they neared the top of the penultimate climb he showed his hand as Jumbo-Visma team-mate Sepp Kuss guided him to the front to launch an attack.

Thomas was quicky on his wheel but Almeida dropped back. Jay Vine did his best to guide his UAE Emirates team-mate back but could not fully close the gap after running wide on the short descent into the two kilometre climb to the finish, leaving Almeida to chase alone.

Irishman Eddie Dunbar finished just behind Almeida to move up to fourth overall, adding to the celebrations for the Jayco-Alula team after Zana’s victory.

While there was still no stage win for Pinot, similarly left frustrated on stage 13 last week, the Frenchman at least moved up to seventh overall, four minutes 43 seconds down.

Alberto Dainese bounced back from stomach problems to win stage 17 of the Giro d’Italia in a photo finish as Geraint Thomas finished safely to retain the leader’s pink jersey.

Dainese, who has spent several days suffering with illness, edged out the fast approaching Jonathan Milan by a tyre’s width in Caorle with Michael Matthews a couple of inches further back.

Mark Cavendish, still seeking a first win of the season a couple of days after announcing it would be his last as a professional, had been near the front of the bunch on the approach to town.

But the Manxman lost position on one of two tight left-handers inside the last two kilometres and could not contest the sprint, showing his frustration as he rolled over the line. There should be one more opportunity for a sprint on Sunday’s final stage in Rome.

Thomas was guided into the finish by Ineos Grenadiers team-mate Ben Swift, staying safe to retain his 18-second advantage over Joao Almeida in the general classification, with Primoz Roglic sat third, 29 seconds down.

That means the Welshman will spend his 37th birthday in pink when the race returns to the mountains on Thursday going into the decisive weekend.

“It was an alright day, a little bit of rain but nothing compared to what we’ve had so far,” Thomas said.

“It was a bit of a crazy bunch finish, we’re happy to get that done. We knew the sprint teams would race a decent pace and we were able to save as much as possible for the next three days.

“It will be nice (tomorrow), hopefully it will be a good day. There’s lots of work to do before (Sunday), we’ll take tomorrow first.”

Before the mountains to come, this was a rare opportunity for the sprinters, and their determination to take it was clear as a four-man breakaway that included Charlie Quarterman was offered little margin and little hope, never building much more than a 90-second advantage.

The last of those escapees, Senne Leysen, was caught with five kilometres left of the 197km from Pergine Valsugana, almost all of which was either flat or downhill.

When the sprint began, Matthews struck out first but Dainese, racing close to home in the north east of Italy, used his slipstream to come around to the right.

More of a surprise was the storming finish of Milan, who appeared out of position on the final bend but this Giro’s in-form sprinter had the pace to get within a few millimetres of victory.

“This is insane,” said the 25-year-old Dainese. “The first sprints didn’t go as we planned, we did a good job but we never had a good result to show it…

“In the last metres I was really digging deep. I saw Jonny coming, I couldn’t really throw my bike because I was on the limit but it was nice to get my wheel a few centimetres in front to get the win.

“Especially after the last five days, I was quite sick with stomach issues and also my breathing was not good and today was the first day I was feeling good. I’m super happy, I can’t thank my team enough for keeping me in the race and keeping me motivated.”

Mark Cavendish will retire from professional cycling at the end of the current season.

Cavendish, who celebrated his 38th birthday on Sunday, made the announcement at a press conference on the rest day of this year’s Giro D’Italia.

The Manxman boasts 53 Grand Tour stage victories and a world title, and is still set to compete at the Tour de France in July, where he could break the record of 34 stage wins he currently shares with Eddy Merckx.

Cavendish said: “I’ve absolutely loved racing every kilometre of this race so far, so I feel it’s the perfect time to say it’s my final Giro d’Italia and 2023 will be my final season as a professional cyclist.

“Yesterday I celebrated my 38th birthday. Like many others I’ve been struggling with sickness during the race as well as the effects of some unfortunate crashes. To get me through, I can’t thank this group of friends enough.

“Cycling has been my life for over 25 years. I have lived an absolute dream and the bike has given me the opportunity to see the world and meet some incredible people.

“It’s taught me so much about life – dedication, loyalty, companionship, teamwork, sacrifice, humility and perseverance – all things that now, as a father, I can show my children.”

Geraint Thomas, his long-time friend and team-mate who won the 2018 Tour de France, called Cavendish “the greatest sprinter of all time” and said he struggled to believe his retirement news.

“He told me at the start of the Giro,” said Thomas. “I didn’t really believe him. I kind of thought he would keep going.

“He has had an incredible career and I am really proud to have been a team-mate of his for a long time.

“He is the greatest sprinter of all time when you see his record. But he hasn’t finished ye, and has got to get the record at the Tour (de France) and hopefully win a stage here.”

British Cycling performance director Stephen Park also paid tribute to Cavendish, saying in a statement: “On behalf of British Cycling, I would like to congratulate Mark on a truly outstanding career.

“Cav is without doubt the sport’s greatest sprinter and will be remembered by fans across the world for his 53 Grand Tour stage wins, and I’m sure that we will all be cheering him on as he looks to add to that total in his final months of racing.”

Cavendish won his first world title in the Madison in 2005 in Los Angeles, and within three years had claimed four Tour de France stage wins, as well as two at the Giro d’Italia, to become Britain’s leading Grand Tour cyclist at the age of just 22.

As well as his Grand Tour exploits, Cavendish won a silver medal in the omnium at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, and gold in the scratch race at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, representing the Isle of Man.

And he fulfilled a childhood dream in 2011 when he won the road World Championship in Copenhagen, becoming the first British man to do so since Tom Simpson in 1965, a year which also saw him crowned BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

Park added: “Professional and passionate, Cav has been a real asset to our team over the years and will be remembered as both a peerless rider and a fantastic teammate with time for everyone.

“We wish him the very best of luck both for the rest of his final season in the peloton and in the next stage of his career.”

Geraint Thomas has no intentions of following Mark Cavendish by riding off into retirement any time soon as he targets Giro d’Italia success and finalising a contract extension at Ineos Grenadiers.

Welshman Thomas admits he did not quite believe his friend Cavendish would go through with his plans when he told him in confidence ahead of this year’s Giro.

Thomas, who played a key role when Cavendish won the world road race championship in 2011, hailed the Manxman as the “greatest sprinter of all time” and hopes he goes on to break the record for Tour de France stage wins later this summer.

Having previously hinted 2023 might be his final season as a professional cyclist, Thomas – who turns 37 on Thursday – remains fully focused on the challenges ahead.

“I said before the start of this tour that I just want to concentrate on the race,” Thomas told a media call during Monday’s Giro rest day.

“Talk has started with this team about extending (my contract), but I am going to cross that bridge in a couple of weeks after this race hopefully.”

Thomas, who won the 2018 Tour de France, has raced alongside Cavendish in the British Cycling set-up as well as for one season at Team Sky.

“He is the greatest sprinter of all time when you see his record and it has been an honour to ride with him,” said Thomas.

“Mark told me at the start of the Giro. I didn’t really believe him. I kind of thought he would keep going.

“He has had an incredible career. He is still racing, though, and has got to get the record at the Tour (de France) and hopefully win a stage here.”

Thomas surrendered the pink jersey to Bruno Armirail on stage 14, and heads into Tuesday’s 203-kilometre mountain course from Sabbio Chiese to Monte Bondone just over a minute off the pace and only two seconds ahead of favourite Primoz Roglic.

Thomas, though, will not take any unnecessary risks as he plots a successful path towards Rome.

“I certainly want to race, but I don’t want to just attack for the entertainment and then blow myself up and somebody else profit from it,” the Welshman said.

“We have got three mountain-top road stages and a super hard TT (time trial), so people have to try.

“We (Ineos) are obviously not leading the race because I am second, but when you look at the GC guys on top of the tree, you would say the onus is on other guys to try and gain some time back.

“But we have got our way of how we want to race and what we are thinking and hopefully that can come off.”

Thomas added: “I don’t think any of us will feel too comfortable with the situation at the moment – between me and Primoz there is only two seconds and anything can happen.

“You know for sure he is going to try to gain time and me as well, same with Joao (Almeida).

“The next three mountain stages will be interesting because we are all going to look to see if we can try to get something over the others.”

Lizzie Deignan believes the standard of professional cycling is getting “harder and harder” as she continues to make her return to the sport.

The 34-year-old is set to compete in the three-day Ford RideLondon Classique later this week, her first UK race since October 2021.

RideLondon begins on Friday and has two stages in Essex before Sunday’s finale in central London, which includes a finish down the Mall.

Speaking about her return to competitive action this year after giving birth to her second child last September, Deignan believes the performance levels in cycling are continuing to improve.

“I think on both the men’s and women’s side, professional cycling it’s getting harder and harder,” Deignan told a press conference.

“Everybody is pushing their limits and the performance levels are getting stronger in women’s cycling particularly, the changes, the investment that we’ve seen means the peloton, the level of performance, is deeper.

“It’s harder for breakaways to go on climbs, the break takes longer to go, it’s just simply harder than it’s ever been before – which is great!”

Seven months after giving birth to son Shea, the Olympic silver medallist and former World Road Race champion made an earlier-than-expected return to racing in April.

Injury and illness among her Trek-Segafredo team-mates saw her line up at La Fleche Wallonne last month before going on to compete in Liege-Bastogne-Liege.

Deignan has since taken part in La Vuelta Femenina, making the upcoming RideLondon race her fourth competition of the year, and she says she is settling back into dealing with the demands of racing.

“Personally, my form I learned again for the second time that you can be flying in training, you can be as fit as you want, but it’s no replication for racing,” said Deignan, who gave birth to daughter Orla in September 2018.

“You simply can’t suffer as much you need to or accelerate as many times as you need to, there’s no replacement for racing.

“I’m really happy that the finesse and race rhythm has come back really quickly so I’m excited to do RideLondon.

“Even in the last week I feel like I’ve taken another step forward in my performance so I’m really excited about it.”

Mark Cavendish will retire from professional cycling at the end of the current season.

Cavendish, who celebrated his 38th birthday on Sunday, made the announcement at a press conference on the rest day of this year’s Giro D’Italia.

The Manxman boasts 53 Grand Tour stage victories and a world title, and is still set to compete at the Tour de France in July, where he could break the record of 34 stage wins he currently shares with Eddy Merckx.

Cavendish said: “I’ve absolutely loved racing every kilometre of this race so far, so I feel it’s the perfect time to say it’s my final Giro d’Italia and 2023 will be my final season as a professional cyclist.

“Yesterday I celebrated my 38th birthday. Like many others I’ve been struggling with sickness during the race as well as the effects of some unfortunate crashes. To get me through, I can’t thank this group of friends enough.

“Cycling has been my life for over 25 years. I have lived an absolute dream and the bike has given me the opportunity to see the world and meet some incredible people.

“It’s taught me so much about life – dedication, loyalty, companionship, teamwork, sacrifice, humility and perseverance – all things that now, as a father, I can show my children.”

British Cycling performance director Stephen Park paid tribute to Cavendish, saying in a statement: “On behalf of British Cycling, I would like to congratulate Mark on a truly outstanding career.

“Cav is without doubt the sport’s greatest sprinter and will be remembered by fans across the world for his 53 Grand Tour stage wins, and I’m sure that we will all be cheering him on as he looks to add to that total in his final months of racing.”

Cavendish won his first world title in the Madison in 2005 in Los Angeles, and within three years had claimed four Tour de France stage wins, as well as two at the Giro d’Italia, to become Britain’s leading Grand Tour cyclist at the age of just 22.

As well as his Grand Tour exploits, Cavendish won a silver medal in the omnium at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, and gold in the scratch race at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, representing the Isle of Man.

Park added: “Professional and passionate, Cav has been a real asset to our team over the years and will be remembered as both a peerless rider and a fantastic teammate with time for everyone.

“We wish him the very best of luck both for the rest of his final season in the peloton and in the next stage of his career.”

Mark Cavendish piled up 161 victories on the road to go with world titles on the track over the course of his illustrious career.

His 34 career Tour de France stage wins are equalled only by Eddy Merckx, while his 53 Grand Tour stage victories put him third in the all-time standings.

Here the PA news agency takes a look at some of his career highlights.

2005

Won the first of his Madison world titles on the track, partnering Rob Hayles after replacing the injured Geraint Thomas.

2006
Took gold in the scratch race at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.

2007
Moved up to what is now the WorldTour level on the road and took a breakthrough victory at Scheldeprijs.

Finished the season with 11 victories, equalling Alessandro Petacchi’s record for a debut campaign.

2008

Took a second Madison world title, this time with Bradley Wiggins, in Manchester.

Won four stages of the Tour de France and two stages of the Giro d’Italia

2009
Became the second Briton to win a Monument with victory in Milan-Sanremo

Won six stages of the Tour, and wore the leader’s jersey for two days at the Giro after taking four stages.

2010
Won five stages of the Tour.

Wore the leader’s red jersey for two stages of the Vuelta a Espana and won the points classification after taking four stages.

2011

Became the second British road race world champion after Tom Simpson with victory in Copenhagen

Won five stages of the Tour de France along with the points classification. Wore the leader’s jersey at the Giro and won three stages.

2012
Won three Tour stages, and three stages of the Giro, wearing the leader’s pink jersey for three days.

2013
Won two Tour stage and five Giro stages, wearing the leader’s pink jersey for one day.

Became British national champion.

2015
Won one stage of the Tour.

2016

Won four stages of the Tour, wearing the leader’s yellow jersey for the first time after the opening stage and completing his set of wearing the leader’s jersey in all three grand tours.

Became Madison world champion for the third time, winning with Wiggins in London.

Won his first Olympic medal with silver in the omnium.

2021
Tasted victory for the first time in more than three years when he headed a bunch sprint across the line at the Tour of Turkey, the first of four stage wins at the race.

Followed up by winning the final stage of the Belgium Tour, before matching the Tour de France stage wins record when collecting the 34th of his career in Carcassonne on July 9.

2022
Won his 16th Giro d’Italia stage when he sprinted to victory on stage three in Hungary.

Added a second British road title to his career with success in Scotland in June.

Brandon McNulty won stage 15 of the Giro d’Italia while Bruno Armirail retained the Maglia Rosa.

The UAE Team Emirates rider won in thrilling circumstances to secure his first victory at the Giro following a three-man sprint in the final kilometre of the race.

The climax of the the 195-kilometre long Seregno-Bergamo meant McNulty edged out Ben Healy and Marco Frigo, who finished second and third respectively.

McNulty said afterwards: “I’m stoked. This was my goal coming here. I wanted a stage win but I got sick in the time trial.

“I wanted to finish solo but luckily I managed to win, even in a sprint.

“I knew the third guy was coming across. Let’s hope this win adds to the team’s motivation on GC with Joao Almeida.”

Sunday’s result means Geraint Thomas still trails Armirail in the general classification by just one minute and eight seconds.

The French Groupama rider keeps the lead going into Monday’s rest day and admitted it had been a difficult challenge to retain the jersey.

Armirail said: “It’s been difficult to retain the Maglia Rosa.

“It was a hard stage with a lot of climbing and there was Einer Rubio at the front. He was likely to take the jersey so my team-mates had to pace all along.

“Yesterday I didn’t realise what it was to take the Maglia Rosa but today with the incredible support of the crowd I’ve found out what it’s like.

“It’s huge and I’m delighted to stay in the lead on the rest day.”

Einer Rubio won stage 13 of the Giro d’Italia as Geraint Thomas retained the Maglia Rosa on a rain-interrupted day which saw the race shortened.

Movistar rider Rubio won the 74.6-kilometre stage in two hours 16 minutes and 21 seconds.

Thibaut Pinot and Jefferson Alexander Cepeda finished second and third respectively.

Rubio said: “A big day that I was looking for by working very hard. It’s been difficult with the bad weather. But I had to keep going.

“I knew that Pinot was very strong. I had to finish with him and play it well tactically. It will take time for me to realise that I won a stage of the Giro d’Italia. I didn’t believe I’d do it.”

The stage started under heavy rain at Borgofranco d’Ivrea but organisers were forced to re-route some of it, with riders retreating to their team buses due to the conditions.

Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers) retains the overall lead ahead of Primoz Roglic and Joao Almeida.

Thomas said: “We stayed calm when a small group went in the first climb. We stayed in control with Ben Swift and Pavel Sivakov setting the pace. Great ride by them. The way it went at the end made it quite hard to attack.

“But Primoz is probably happy to leave me in the Maglia Rosa for a few more days. I expect something more from him next week.”

Germany’s Nico Denz won stage 12 of the Giro d’Italia in Rivoli after outsprinting Latvia’s Toms Skujins to the finish line as Geraint Thomas remained as overall leader.

Denz had too much power for his rival at the end of the mainly flat 185-kilometre stage, which started in Bra, after the pair formed part of a five-man breakaway with 92km to go.

BORA-hansgrohe rider Denz, Skujins (Trek-Segafredo) and Australia’s Sebastian Berwick, who finished third, had pulled clear of the leading group, together with Italy’s Alessandro Tonelli (Green Project Bardiani).

Tonelli fell away with 32km to go but held on to finish fourth, while Giro leader Thomas came home safely in the peloton to maintain his two-second lead over Primoz Roglic in the general classification.

Denz said after his first Grand Tour stage win: “It’s really big for me. I’m super proud. I was not supposed to be in the break. It was up to Patrick Konrad and Bob Jungels.

“But Bob said he wasn’t at his best and he preferred to save energy to help Lennard Kamna (on Friday) so I had to replace him at the front.

“When I looked around me in the breakaway there were only monsters. Cooperation in the breakaway was very bad, then I found myself at the front on the last climb. Then I knew the finale. I had it in my mind. So I could sprint the way I wanted.”

Thomas took the leaders’ pink jersey after the withdrawal of race leader Remco Evenepoel due to a positive Covid-19 test on Sunday.

The Ineos Grenadiers rider made no bid to impact on the breakaway group, which did not include any general classification contenders, and was grateful for the support of his team-mates.

Thomas said: “Obviously Pavel Sivakov rode very well today despite his crash yesterday.

“He’s definitely in a good shape. Hopefully it’s all good tomorrow in Switzerland and I can defend the Maglia Rosa the same way I won the Tour de Suisse before.”

British rider Tao Geoghegan Hart suffered a hip fracture and will need surgery after being involved in a crash during stage 11 of the Giro d’Italia.

The Ineos Grenadiers racer, the 2020 champion, was involved in a multi-bike accident in wet conditions on a downhill descent with around 70km of the race’s longest leg remaining.

Geoghegan Hart, who sat third in the overall standings, was pictured being loaded into an ambulance after receiving roadside treatment.

After being taken to hospital for more examinations, the Ineos Grenadiers team confirmed Geoghegan Hart was set for an extended spell of recovery.

“Immediately following his involvement in a crash during today’s Stage 11 of the Giro d’Italia, Tao Geoghegan Hart was transported to a local hospital in Genoa,” an Ineos Grenadiers statement said.

“After further assessment, imaging confirmed that Tao had sustained a fracture of the left hip which will require surgery.

“Tao, the thoughts and best wishes of all your fellow Grenadiers are with you tonight. We wish you a speedy recovery and know you have what it takes to come back even stronger!”

Team-mate and overall race leader Geraint Thomas was also involved in the incident, but was able to continue along with nearest challenger Primoz Roglic.

Thomas said after the race: “As usual we were jostling for position, a UAE guy crashed next to me. I don’t know exactly who was taken out after me.

“We were pretty much on the same spot. Unfortunately Tao is badly injured. It’s obviously a big loss.

“He was going very well. He was in a really great position and it’s very unfortunate to lose him this way.”

Thomas retained the pink jersey for overall race leader with a two-second lead over Jumbo-Visma’s Roglic.

Pascal Ackermann, riding for UAE Team Emirates, claimed the stage 11 victory after triumphing courtesy of a photo finish in Tortona, crossing the line just ahead of Jonathan Milan.

This year’s race has been beset with problems as poor weather has been accompanied by a coronavirus outbreak, which has now seen 13 riders withdraw.

Soudal Quick-Step riders Jan Hirt, Josef Cerny, Louis Vervaeke and Mattia Cattaneo were the latest to pull out on Wednesday.