Geraint Thomas has officially announced that he will be ending his professional cycling career at the end of the 2025 season.
The Welshman made the statement in a post to Instagram on Monday morning, with his 19th year in the peloton set to be his last.
Thomas will retire as one of the UK's most successful-ever cyclists, with his 2018 Tour de France victory standing alongside wins at races including Paris-Nice, the Tour de Suisse, and Critérium du Dauphiné on his road palmarès. On the track, he struck gold for his country as part of the team pursuit-winning Great Britain squad in both 2008 and 2012.
Thomas is set to end his career on home roads at the Tour of Britain in September, while he also aims to take on one final Tour de France – in what would be his 14th career appearance – in July.
"Thought it was time we made it official. Yes, this will be my last year in the peloton," Thomas wrote in a post on Instagram. "It's not been a bad run eh?
"Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine being a pro for 19 years. There'll be lots of time to reflect but, before then, I've got some big races to prep for."
Thomas has already kicked off his final season on the bike, racing in the southern hemisphere at the Villawood Men's Classic, the Tour Down Under, the Surf Coast Classic, and the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race before taking part in the Figueira Champions Classic on Sunday.
He'll fill his early season schedule with the Volta ao Algarve, Tirreno-Adriatico, Volta a Catalunya, and Tour de Romandie, with his summer currently up in the air pending one last visit to the Tour. A possible participation at the Deutschland Tour follows, with the Tour of Britain rounding out his years on the bike in seven months.
Speaking on his Geraint Thomas Cycling Club Podcast, Thomas called his impending retirement "kind of an open secret", before stating that he didn't want to continue racing if he felt there might be a chance to regret that decision.
"It's kind of an open secret, isn't it? It's going to be my final year racing the bike, which is kind of weird because it's always been in the back of my mind," Thomas said. "But in the last, maybe four years, it's always been like 'this will be my last contract, it's almost sort-of postponed and delayed, I end up signing on again. But it's official now, isn't it? It's my last year which is kind of weird.
"I think that, as the years go by, I don't want to get to that stage where I'm going 'Aaah, I should've stopped last year because I don’t want to be here right now. The main thing, to be honest, is the family."
Thomas went on to talk about his goals for his final year on the bike, including a start at the Tour de France, the race he won seven years ago, in Lille on July 5. One final ride on home ground in Wales is also on his to-do list, with the Tour of Britain's 2025 route yet to be revealed.
"It would be nice to go to the Tour de France one more time. Go there in the best shape I can basically, assuming Carlos [Rodríguez] is going to be there riding for GC as our leader, then I’d love to help him as best I can, or whoever that is. Then obviously to try and go for a stage – I think that, in my final year, to win a stage at the Tour would be pretty cool.
"If you could pick anything then it would be finishing on home roads and the Tour of Britain is exactly that. Rod Ellingworth – who's my old coach from the academy then obviously he was part of Sky for so many years – he's the race director there as well.
"So, I've asked him to pull a few favours, possibly go into Wales for the final stage – possibly Cardiff city centre outside the castle. That would be awesome."
