Geraint Thomas says he is disappointed that he has been unable to win a second consecutive Tour de France, but leaves happy seeing Colombian team-mate Egan Bernal succeed for Team Ineos.
Thomas, after helping Chris Froome win four times, had his chance in 2018. This year, though, he went back to helper role when the race entered its final stages. Doing so, he rode himself into second place at 1-11 down from Bernal.
"There's a part of me that would want to be on the top step, but at same time, Egan is an amazing guy, he's 22, who knows how many he'll win," Thomas said.
"The way the team has been it's just been incredible. And it couldn't be a nicer guy to win. Egan is truly a genuinely nice, friendly, happy guy pleasure to ride with. And Christ, he's only 22."
Egan Bernal and Geraint Thomas finish stage 20 of the Tour de France 2019 (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Bernal becomes the youngest post-war winner and the first Colombian to do so. Thomas says he is satisfied to help Bernal to that title even if he could not win.
"Well the thing is, before last year, I think nobody even thought I could podium in the Tour and now, it's disappointing I didn't win my second. You have to put it into perspective," Thomas added.
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"I for sure wanted to win, but I have to be happy that I gave everything I could to be in the best shape here. For one reason or another sometimes it's not meant to be. I still performed well and feel like I gave everything. The fact that Egan is in front of me makes it OK."
Last year, Chris Froome turned himself inside out to support Thomas. The Welshman had won to La Rosière and in yellow the next day, won the Alpe d'Huez stage.
"It must have been harder for Froomey, he won four already, he was after his fifth last year," Thomas explained. "It just shows we're very good team. We always do everything we can to win as a team."
Bernal will win the team's seventh Tour title assuming he survives the flat stage in Paris tomorrow.
Froome will not be around since he broke his leg in June. Thomas, like Froome suffered this year. He crashed in the Tour de Suisse and could not complete his final Tour preparations. Then, in the Tour, he suffered three minor crashes.
"It's been an eventful year, a lot of ups and downs, mainly downs. I gave everything I could to try to win and for one reason or another, it didn't work," Thomas continued.
"The run up to the Tour wasn't straight forward. In this Tour, it seemed like Murphy's Law: what can go wrong, will go wrong. And luckily, it was nothing major, but it's just little setbacks here and there all the time and the way the tactics worked out at times."
Thomas renewed his contract and with Bernal, they are due to ride in Ineos's colours for the foreseeable future. The team will have to manage their ambitions with others like Froome's.
"I wouldn't say there's a rivalry, but yeah we are both ambitious, and we're at different stages of our career and you know, I've ridden and been loyal for so many team-mates before me.
"It was 10 years of doing it when I get my own opportunity to [win the Tour] but at the same time, when someone like Egan who's in the team as well and he's riding well, there's no shame and no harm if I do my bit for him."
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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.
