Geraint Thomas commits support to help Egan Bernal to overall Tour de France victory
Thomas says he'll ride for Bernal to try and secure Ineos the overall win after the final stage in the Alps


Geraint Thomas (Ineos) will turn his attention to helping Egan Bernal win the 2019 Tour de France just as Chris Froome did for him in the 2018 edition.
Bernal, the team's 22-year-old Colombian star, took the yellow jersey on the shortened stage to Tignes. He topped the Iseran first and with enough gap over Julian Alaphilippe (Deceuninck-Quick-Step) to take the lead. Then the organisers trimmed the stage due to rain, hail and a mudslide in the valley before Tignes.
>>> Emotional Egan Bernal fulfils yellow jersey dream on 'strange' day at the Tour de France
He leads in the yellow jersey with 45 seconds on Alaphilippe and 1-11 on Thomas, the 2018 victor. If he won in Paris in two days, he would be the first Colombian to do so and the youngest post-war winner – and Thomas pledges his support to that goal.
"Most definitely," Thomas said when asked if his job was to help Bernal win the Tour.
"Going into the last stage, Egan's in the yellow jersey so the main thing is he finishes the job. I haven't seen any GC yet but for sure he'll have a decent advantage over everyone else so we'll fully support him now."
Thomas spoke at the anti-doping tent while Bernal celebrated on the podium in the yellow jersey. Bernal on Saturday will race to become Ineos's seventh Tour winner, adding to those wins from Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome and Thomas.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Bernal was tipped to win the Tour among others including Thomas. He won the Paris-Nice overall and the Tour de Suisse overall earlier this year.
"He's been incredible from the start of the Tour," Thomas continued.
"He's a phenomenal talent. We all said last year he'll win the Tour one day, maybe we didn't expect it to be this year but he's been super strong and he's shown, climbing, he's one of the best here. So we just need to finish this job now."
Thomas made his move on the Iseran, which Ineos noted as being potentially decisive even before the bad weather swept though the Alps. He was followed, then Bernal led the way in the wake of his Welsh team-mate.
Their tag-team effort ensured Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe lost the yellow jersey. But they did not know what was going to happen next. And Thomas, regardless, thought the team was "in a great position" for the eventual 2019 Tour win.
"It was a funny one because you think if we'd known that before, it would have been more of a race on the last climb. It's one of those things, it's out of everyone's control," said Thomas.
"I dunno, it's all ifs and buts [whether or not I had the legs to do more] but the main thing is we've got the yellow jersey in the team now.
"We're in a great position. We've just got to go and finish the job off tomorrow."
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Gregor Brown is an experienced cycling journalist, based in Florence, Italy. He has covered races all over the world for over a decade - following the Giro, Tour de France, and every major race since 2006. His love of cycling began with freestyle and BMX, before the 1998 Tour de France led him to a deep appreciation of the road racing season.
-
'We're definitely not done yet' - Olav Kooij sprints to victory on stage 12 of the Giro d’Italia
Perfect lead out from Wout van Aert sets up the Dutchman in the final kilometre
-
Mark Cavendish is giving a free sprinting masterclass - here's how you can sign up
Tour de France legend to host meet-and-greet experience this July
-
'I only found out I was coming to this race yesterday' - Sam Watson claims first WorldTour win in 3.4km Tour de Romandie prologue
Brit wins by just three tenths of a second to take leader's jersey
-
'It can really push me along' - How a velodrome comeback is making Caleb Ewan faster on the road
Australian says he'll "definitely" continue track work after rekindling passion
-
Could Caleb Ewan be Ineos Grenadiers' first Tour de France sprinter since Mark Cavendish? 'That's my goal'
"All I can do is try to win as much as possible and prove that I deserve to be there," says Australian
-
'An unprecedented opportunity for brands to be part of the evolution' - Ineos Grenadiers sponsor hunt steps up with sales agency partnership
Sportfive have been employed to find "non-endemic global partners for the team"
-
'We've all got a little bit extra in us this year' - Ineos Grenadiers recapture 'fighting spirit' with aggressive Paris-Nice display
British team continue to put tumultuous 2024 behind them with momentum and a new found mentality
-
Could a TotalEnergies deal be the end of Ineos Grenadiers as we know them?
Reports suggested this week that Ineos could be close to signing a deal with the French petrochemical firm
-
'They’re racing with their hearts again' - Robbie McEwen on Ineos Grenadiers' bright start to 2025
The British squad have already won four times in 2025
-
Ineos Grenadiers are entertaining so far this year, but how long will it last?
The British WorldTour squad have won four times already in 2025, but more than that, they have been fun. Is this the new dawn?