Geraint Thomas is looking for closure and personal satisfaction in 2023. He no longer has anything to prove, including to the Ineos Grenadiers team, and will travel to Pescara for the Giro d’Italia ready for what is probably his last shot at a Grand Tour victory.
Thomas will turn 37 on May 25, the same day as stage 18 to Val di Zoldo, just as the race enters its denouement in the mountains. Whatever the final outcome, the Giro will be an emotional journey for the Welshman.
He is keen to race on in 2024, perhaps with a farewell ride at the Tour de France, but he knows nothing is certain in modern professional cycling, with young rivals taking over the sport and even his teammates competing for his leadership status at Ineos Grenadiers.
Thomas’ love for cycling started in Wales as a schoolboy on the Maindy outdoor track but Italy forged him and inspired him even before he began his 17-year professional career. Targeting the Giro one last time completes a career circle.
He was based in Tuscany as part of the Great Britain Under-23s squad, the launchpad for Olympic gold on the track and Classics success on the road. Later, he made the transformation into a Grand Tour rider. Victory at the 2018 Tour de France was followed by podium finishes in 2019 and 2022.
Thomas has spent 14 years at Team Sky and Ineos, outlasting Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome as the British team’s captain and figurehead. He has overcome serious crashes, setbacks and disappointment, never losing his determination, but living every moment with a sense of adventure and a deadpan sense of humour.
“You never reflect when you’re busy racing, but when you get closer to the end of your career, you do look back at what you’ve done,” Thomas tells Cyclingnews.
“Yet I don’t want to rest on my laurels, I always need to push forward. There are people in the team trying to move up, but you want to stay in front of them, in a healthy competition kind of way. I still want to keep performing and that includes at the Giro.”
Thomas has been nominated as a team leader for the Giro, with the in-form Tao Geoghegan Hart an alternative. Pavel Sivakov and Thymen Arensman also part of a strong Ineos Grenadiers squad.
The British team have won multiple Grand Tours over the years but perhaps know the Tour de France will again be out of reach in 2023 and so are targeting the Giro. They face a huge task in trying to defeat Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) and Primož…
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