It Really is the End of the Glittering Road for Geraint Thomas and There’s Hardly a Dry Eye in the House

The man who inspired thousands of Welsh kids – and plenty of lycra-squeezed adults - to get on their bikes, completed his farewell in his home city of Cardiff surrounded by family, friends, and thousands of adoring supporters.

The 2018 Tour de France champion, who also claimed two Olympic gold medals on the track and a Commonwealth Games title on the road, was given a guard of honour before the start of the final stage. 

In a symbolic gesture, the peloton rolled out from the Geraint Thomas National Velodrome of Wales in Newport, before tracing a route that passed his childhood cycling club, Maindy Flyers, and even his parents’ house. 

The 122.2km stage ended on North Road in Cardiff, where the 39-year-old crossed the line for the last time as a professional rider.

“It is emotional,” Thomas told S4C as he fought back tears, standing alongside his young son Macsen. 

“It is the pinnacle isn’t it, just finishing here. I am struggling to even speak. I knew I would be emotional, but this is special.

“It has been amazing. I don’t get to race for Wales much, but any country I was in, it felt like I was representing Wales anyway.

“This support now has just been incredible. Riding in (towards the finish), I was just choking up on the bike. It was an incredible atmosphere.”

Geraint Thomas at the end of Stage 5 of the Tour of Britain on the Tumble. Pic: Owen Morgan

On Saturday, Welsh fans were allso out in force to salute Thomas. Starting in Pontypool Park, they lined the route across Monmouthshire and were there at the finish for a double ascent of the famous Tumble hill climb near Abergavenny.

If that was the prelude, then for Thomas, Sunday felt like a full circle moment. 

“I was emotional crossing the line, I was almost like choking up riding my bike,” he admitted. 

“It's definitely emotional to finish here and it is just unbelievable really, it is a full circle moment.”

Fans take the chance to take a photo of Geraint Thomas before his career comes to an end. Pic: Owen Morgan

On the road, the race itself delivered its usual drama. 

A four-man breakaway animated the stage, only for the peleton to briefly stop when a farmer led his cows across the road near Markham. 

Later, Bastien Tronchon, Julius Johansen and Fred Wright attempted to push clear on the descent of Caerphilly Mountain, but their efforts were reeled in before Dutch sprinter Olav Kooij powered to his third stage victory of the race. 

Samuel Watson of Ineos Grenadiers and Fred Wright of Bahrain Victorious rounded out the podium, while Romain Gregoire sealed the overall general classification, finishing just two seconds ahead of Remco Evenepoel.

Thomas, wearing a special Ineos Grenadiers jersey he had designed himself, came home in 62nd place on the stage and 80th overall. 

A young fan dons a Geraint Thomas mask on Saturday. Pic: Owen Morgan

But for the Welsh fans who lined the route, his result mattered little. 

Every pedal stroke was a celebration of a rider who had become not just a Tour de France winner, but one of the most beloved figures in British sport.

Since joining Team Sky at its inception in 2010, Thomas had been part of cycling’s modern transformation. 

Initially a track specialist, his early career brought Olympic success in Beijing and London before he reinvented himself on the road. 

A Commonwealth Games gold medal in Glasgow in 2014 underlined his versatility, and four years later he produced the ride of his life in France, storming to victory on Alpe d’Huez before sealing the yellow jersey in Paris.

As he reflected on his final race, Thomas allowed himself a glimpse of the future beyond professional cycling. 

“I have got to take the little one to school on Tuesday and then I have my brother's stag do in Portugal,” he joked when asked what was next. 

“A little bit of normality.”

Geraint Thomas was signing autographs and posing for selfies long after the end of Saturday's Stage 5. Pic: Owen Morgan

That sense of grounding, of keeping perspective, has been a hallmark of Thomas’s career. 

Known for his humour as much as his grit, he carried Welsh sporting pride to the very top of world cycling. 

Sunday’s farewell through the streets of Cardiff, past the places where it all began, provided a fitting end.

The stage winner’s bouquet belonged to Kooij, and the overall jersey to Gregoire, but the day’s true story was Thomas – emotional, overwhelmed, and finally at peace with the end of a journey that began decades ago at a small cycling club in Cardiff.