Geraint Thomas has undeniably been one of the brightest stars at this year’s Tour de France – he sported the Best Young Rider’s white jersey for most of the first week and is currently holding ninth place on the overall Youth standings and tenth as a Climber. Something of a relief then to Team Sky that, just days after suggesting he was in talks with other outfits, he has confirmed that he will be renewing with them for a further 3 years, taking him through to the end of the 2014 season. Commenting on the renegotiated commitment the Welshman says, “The team have shown their potential over the last 18 months and I am delighted to have been a part of that success. The management have shown real faith in me as a rider and I feel like I’m improving all the time. The future is really exciting for Team Sky and British Cycling and I’m thrilled I will be able to play a part in it.”
Team Sky principle Dave Brailsford (who is also performance director at British Cycling) showed understandable relief at the development: “We have been determined from the start to build and develop a team around the very best home-grown talent like Geraint. The last two weeks at the Tour de France have underlined again his world class abilities and we look forward to seeing even more from him over the next three years.”
The only potential fly in the ointment for Thomas is that his contract is likely to commit him to participation in the 2012 Tour de France which is scheduled to end just days before the start of the London Olympic Games; with the Cardiff-born cycling star already having won gold as part of the team pursuit in the Beijing Games, the timing could jeopardise his chances of repeating that success.
