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Caerphilly County Borough, and south Wales, turned out in force to wave goodbye to cycling legend Geraint Thomas, and the final stage of the Lloyds Tour of Britain Men did not disappoint, with an exciting finish in Cardiff as Olav Kooij (Visma-Lease a Bike) burst from the bunch to secure his third stage victory of this year’s race, after the day’s main break was caught less than 100m from the line.

Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ) held his nerve despite facing an onslaught of attacks on Caerphilly Mountain to win the overall by just two seconds from Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step), while the day also saw tens of thousands of fans line the streets and descend on Cardiff to celebrate Geraint Thomas’s career and bid the Welshman farewell after he retired at the conclusion of the six-day race.

Thomas’ career celebrations included a guard of honour from the entire peloton at the start in Newport, and a farewell party at Cardiff Castle, as a sporting legend hung up his wheels, with his racing career ending with two tough days of racing in his native south Wales, supported by the Welsh Government.

Earlier in the day, the racing was marked by a four-rider break comprising Julius Johansen (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), Bastien Tronchon (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team), Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious), and Mats Wenzel (Equipo Kern Pharma), with the quartet putting on a show once they broke away from the peloton.

The chasing bunch maintained a gap of around two minutes for most of the undulating stage, but as expected, the race fractured on the epic climb of Caerphilly Mountain after Soudal Quick-Step, Picnic PostNL, and Tudor Pro Cycling set a relentless pace heading into the final 25 kilometres of racing.

With 10km remaining, former British national champion Ethan Hayter increased the pace on the lower slopes of the climb for his team leader, Remco Evenepoel, with the Belgian starting the day just two seconds behind Grégoire’s overall lead. Hayter’s efforts closed the gap to the break to within 30 seconds, and when Evenepoel’s expected attack was made, several other GC contenders were quick to respond.

Oscar Onley attacked soon after, forcing Grégoire to respond, but over the summit of the climb, Tronchon, Johansen, and Wright remained at the front of the race with a slender eight-second gap.

With just under 7km to go, Evenepoel attacked on the long descent to the finish with Grégoire once more forced into a frantic chase.

Out front, the remaining trio worked well together, but the stop-start nature of the peloton eventually led to a significant regrouping, with Kooij and several of his Visma-Lease a Bike teammates returning to the peloton. From there, the momentum on the stage shifted, with the break left dangling at the front, having a 16-second buffer and 4.5km remaining.

The trio refused to throw in the towel and powered into the last 500m with a narrow gap on the chase, but just as Wright opened up his sprint, Kooij blasted through the pack to take the stage win and deny Wright his first-ever stage victory in the race. The Bahrain Victorious rider held on to take a well-deserved third place, while Sam Watson (INEOS Grenadiers) finished second.

“We’ve had a pretty amazing week. It’s really nice to finish it this way,” Kooij said at the finish in Cardiff.

“I think we were not that far away on GC, so we thought about trying to close that gap and also fight for the bonus seconds. We also had to use a few guys to try and bring the break closer for the stage win, though.

“This week has been really special, we took control most of the week, it’s something that doesn’t happen too often so we’re really happy.”

Fond farewell to a cycling legend

As the final stage got underway at the Geraint Thomas Veledrome in Newport, the pre-race crowds only had eyes for one team.

Ahead of what would be his final race before retirement, Geraint Thomas lined up outside the INEOS Grenadiers team bus.

For a rider who has been a mainstay on the British cycling scene across three decades, it was only fitting that the day belonged to the 39-year-old, with a guard of honour at the start led by his INEOS teammates, with his own son, Macs, joining in.

It was memorable too, that Thomas was the first rider to attack once the flag was dropped, with the Welshman jumping clear on home roads. Although there would be no fairytale day in the break, the veteran later enjoyed the freedom of riding up Caerphilly Mountain with long-term friend and teammate Ben Swift to accompany him as fans cheered the pair home.

“It was emotional across the line. All the fans, I was choking up. Crossing the line with Swifty, who I’ve raced with since I was 12, it all came out then and speaking to S4C I couldn’t even speak. It’s definitely emotional. It’s super special, and to finish here is unbelievable,” Thomas said at the finish.

“It’s unreal, the atmosphere, all week, a lot of the years I’ve been racing, particularly today and yesterday, just riding through here, then the amount of people going nuts. It’s mad that people care so much about me doing well; it meant so much. What can I say? What a way to finish,” he added.

Once Thomas’s attack had been neutralised, a wave of attacks followed before the day’s break settled on Johansen, Tronchon, Wright, and Wenzel.

A group of teams kept the break under control throughout the stage, and with the leading riders on GC separated by only a few seconds, the overall standings remained wide open as the race ascended Mynydd Bedwellte and then headed towards the crucial climb of Caerphilly Mountain.

Evenepoel and Onley both tried to create the needed separation on the climb, but France’s Grégoire was equal to every acceleration.

‘I’ve always wanted to win a race like this’

Speaking following his overall victory, the Frenchman said: “I’m really happy, I’ve always wanted to win a race like this. I’m just enjoying the moment, and I’m really happy for myself and the team.

“The riders behind me were very close [in GC], so I had to manage today well, and I think as a team we did it to perfection. Controlling the break and making sure it was a sprint finish, today went really well for us.”

He continued: “With the attacks on the climb, it wasn’t easy to stay with them, but I was pretty committed and my legs felt good. I was able to follow the attacks, which was the good part, but the descent was tricky too, with Remco attacking it wasn’t a fun moment.

“Winning this race ranks really high in my career. At the finish, if there had been a small group, it would have been dangerous for me, but with sprinters like Olav Kooij there, it was easier for me. I was confident when I saw the Visma leadout in the final 2km.”

Kooij also ended the race with the points jersey, while Victor Vercouillie topped the KOM standings. Grégoire also claimed the best young rider’s jersey, and Bahrain Victorious won the team classification.