Toyko 2020 – Geraint Thomas says ‘no egos’ in Team GB cycling squad as he aims to rectify Rio 2016 near-miss

ByMichael Hincks

Updated 22/07/2021 at 14:33 GMT

Geraint Thomas and Tao Geoghegan Hart recently completed the Tour de France, while Simon Yates crashed out. The trio are joined by Adam Yates at Tokyo 2020 in the four-man Team GB squad for Saturday’s 234km men’s road race from Musashinonomori Park to Fuji International Speedway in the Olympic Games.

Geraint Thomas is hoping to make amends in the men’s Olympic road race at Tokyo 2020 after a crash ruined his chances of a third gold five years ago at Rio 2016.

Thomas, a two-time Olympic champion in track cycling, will take to the road once more alongside team-mates Tao Geoghegan Hart, Adam Yates and Simon Yates.

It is a team comprising of three Grand Tour winners, but former Tour de France winner Thomas does not believe egos will play a part as they look to navigate the men’s road race on Saturday.

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"In Rio I was in the mix but crashed on the last descent and that was me out of it. Hopefully it's third time lucky but I'm not thinking too far ahead. I'd love to put that right on Saturday but there's so many factors that come into play, but we'll do our best on the day," said Thomas, who eventually finished 11th in Rio.

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"It's a strong team on paper, we all know the best way of doing it, but it all comes down to the day and how people are feeling with the heat and humidity. Myself and Tao have come out of the Tour, Simon crashed out and for Adam this has been on his radar for the last months.

"It's all slightly different prep but the main thing is that there are no egos and we just communicate, we have our plan and try and execute that well. With such small teams a lot can happen, so much can go wrong and so much can go right.”

The men’s road race on Saturday is set to be a gruelling affair as cyclists tackle five big climbs on the 234km route from Musashinonomori Park to Fuji International Speedway.

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Thomas said luck will be required, with the Welshman admitting he feels “alright” after dislocating his shoulder during the Tour de France before eventually finishing 41st.

"The shoulder is fine, it's more the legs. Someone went into me in the final week and I landed on my right side again, which didn't help with the whole recovery process but I had a great team around me," he added.

"I was able to go as easy as you can in the final three days of the Tour. Training and racing are completely different, but we'll see how we go. I'm up for it and feeling alright.

"We've ridden the last two climbs and they're tough. The heat and humidity will add to that, 230km and that last climb is a proper climb. It's steep and challenging and you'll have to ride it well to not blow up.

"It'll be a war of attrition and people going out the back rather than big attacks. It's not a lottery but you do need a bit of luck."

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