Welshman looking forward to targeting the Classics
Geraint Thomas believes Mark Cavendish leaving Team Sky could be beneficial towards his personal ambitions. The Welshman has spent one year on the same team as Cavendish and has been seen leading him out in the Giro d’Italia and Tour de Romandie. Now, with Cavendish heading elsewhere next season, Thomas is looking at the bright side of things rather than mulling over his departure.
“It’s sad to see him [Cavendish] go because he’s the best sprinter in the world. But from an individual point of view it frees me to do other things,” he told the BBC.
Thomas focused this season largely around the Olympic Games where he won gold in the team pursuit. He is regarded as someone with potential in the Classics after a second place finish in a cobbled Arenberg stage of the Tour de France in 2010 and tenth in Tour of Flanders the same year.
Track considerations over, he’ll now have a chance to focus fully on that. “Next year the classics at the end of March and the start of April are my big individual goals, really,” he said.
“Then I want to go the Tour and help Brad [Wiggins] or [Chris] Froome, whoever the lead will be next year, and hopefully try and win another yellow jersey.
“I’m really looking forward to getting onto that start line and battling for the overall win again.”
Wiggins has been quoted as saying he will target the Giro d’Italia next year and help Froome in the Tour but Thomas says the leadership between the two men at the Tour might not be a done deal.
“I think it gets hyped: ‘It’s a climbers’ course, it’s this and that. But you still go up mountains, you still have long time trials. There’s still danger in sickness and injury and a lot of things come into it,” he said.
“It depends what Brad decides to do. I’ve heard rumours that he might target other races and go to the Tour to help Froome.
“[Wiggins] put a lot of work into winning that Tour. The last few years, he’s lived like a monk. He’s been away from his family, he’s missed kids’ birthdays and there’s only so long you can do that before you want a bit of family life again.”
Either way, he said that he will be fully dedicated to the cause. “We’ll see [who leads the team], but whoever it is I can’t wait to go there and ride for them and battle for that win.”