GERAINT THOMAS BELIEVES Team Sky’s critics will come to appreciate his achievements, as they will “stand the test of time” should he wrap up the Tour de France title.
The British rider finished second in stage 19 on Friday to extend his advantage at the top of the general classification standings to over two minutes heading into the final weekend.
But Sky – including defending champion Chris Froome, who was cleared of wrongdoing in an anti-doping investigation – are unpopular on the Tour.
That does not concern Thomas, who insists he and his team-mates deserve credit as they go about their cycling “the right way”.
“What can you say? I do it the right way. The team does it the right way,” he said on Friday. “We train super hard.
There is nothing I can do to prove it, but [this victory] will stand the test of time.
“The team here is super strong. We have myself, Froomey, Egan Bernal, the brightest talent in a long time, Luke Rowe, who is super strong in the classics.
“The team is just phenomenally strong. It is not just having good legs but good heads. There is nothing more to say.
“I work super hard and I’ve had some bad luck, but it’s nice to know that it is paying off.”
Thomas acknowledged that the ride on Friday, concluding with a frantic descent, was a nervy one as he held off nearest rival Tom Dumoulin to snatch a valuable time bonus going into a decisive time trial on Saturday.
“It was squeaky bum time, as they say in the UK, but all I had to do was to follow Tom,” he added.
“The gap should be enough but we’ll see. I just have to think of it like any other race and not think of the end-game.”
- Omni
