Um, but was there a sense that, uh, did Tielemans maybe ease off just because tomorrow's climbs might suit him better? Like, today, today wasn't necessarily the sort of climb where we've seen him excel on, like twice last year, for example.

Yeah, like the, the next two days definitely suit him better, and he's a lot more, uh, well, motivated for them might be the wrong word, but he knows they're better for him.

And, um, you know, today, you know, I think if we, if we just take a step back and, like, the context of this whole race, start of the year we had completely different ambitions, you know? And, um, I think we had a bit of bad luck and, you know, Carlos needed a bit of a reset before, and then, you know, then go to the Vuelta.

Oscar had his issues.

Kevin, uh, didn't have a great May.

Managed to get into decent shape for, for Dauphiné, then got sick again, you know, was hardly on the bike for a week or so after.

Fossi wasn't even on the long list and, you know, rode well in Swiss, and we were like, "Well, let's give him the opportunity," you know? He's go- you know, Josh broke his collarbone before.

It's a lot.

Um, how does that not-going-to plan change things for you, and where do you go from here?

Yeah, obviously, the TTT was a big goal, but it wasn't the be-all and end-all.

You know, it's still 20 days of racing, and we, we wanted to pick a team that was strong for that, but also could be competitive overall terrain after that.

And, uh, yeah, obviously it didn't quite go to plan.

A bit of bad luck.

Um, but that's, that's sport.

That's life.

You kind of do it in a different way.

I guess it's not a huge, huge change endurance-wise, but tell us why you decided to take on the challenge of it.

Yeah, so basically, well, I retired from professional cycling after 19 years last September.

Last race finished in Cardiff, which was amazing.

Since then, obviously the first month, you know, you're enjoying just eating what you want and drinking.

And then October was full of holidays and, you know, Max was off school for a bit.

So we had a nice safari and we had like a wedding in Ibiza and November came around and like start this new role in the team.

And I actually had a, I called it a retirement party, but I'm still working, but it's more a stopping racing party, shall we say? Yeah.

in the time before the race and how to use them for recovery afterwards as well because I mean something like the Tour de France in fact when I asked my son I said what kind of questions should I ask you and he's like well ask him whether it's going to be easier to do the Tour de France or just to run the London Marathon because he's convinced the marathon is going to be so much easier because you've bounced back day on day on day on day and that's got to be tough mentally

amazing.

Since then, obviously the first month, you know, you're enjoying just eating what you want and drinking.

And then October was full of holidays and, you know, Max was off school for a bit.

So we had a nice safari and we had like a wedding in Ibiza and November came around and like start this new role in the team.

And I actually had a, I called it a retirement party, but I'm still working, but it's more a stopping racing party, shall we say? And I basically like injured my knee trying to get in one of the boys squatting down.

He's like a 90 kilo lad on my shoulders, standing up and did my knee in.

And luckily I was going to do George North first.

afterwards as well because I mean something like the Tour de France in fact when I asked my son I said what kind of questions should I ask you and he was like well ask him whether it's going to be easier to do the Tour de France or just to run the London Marathon because he's convinced the marathon is going to be so much easier because you've bounced back day on day on day on day and that's got to be tough mentally

Are there any mantras, Geraint, that you've had in difficult times or to inspire you on the road that would apply to an amateur cyclist that Ellis can maybe keep in his back pocket for when, you know, the sort of the Brixton to Farringdon... ride the eight mile loop

becomes difficult for me it was always about having like a goal that you're working towards and you're always it's just being committed and consistent to that like motivation never really run off that because this motivation's up and down in it yeah if you're committed you get out and you do it and it's getting that plan believing in that plan and just going after it with no no distractions really or anything that comes you just gotta be so single-minded and selfish really um i don't know if you tick those boxes already but yeah

big time yeah he's very self so when you when you completed the tour with a broken pelvis and i read i read an interview with you with your dad i think and he said that you told him in week one it was agony in week two it was extremely painful and then just in week three it was painful and How can you cycle at that level in that much pain without just saying, actually, I've had enough and I want to stop?

It was, it was all the mental game, to be honest.

Like, so the previous year I missed the tour and that's when Brad Bradley Wiggins won the tour.

I missed it because I was concentrating on the track.

So, you know, completely different disciplines.

One's four minutes, the other's, you know, three weeks.

Surely there's been accidents or something that's happened to you that you've gone, fucking hell, I'm not sure about this.

My pelvis isn't made of granite, really.

That's broke a few times.

So during the tour in 2013, I crashed, like flipped over my handlebars, landed on the back of my pelvis, and that cracked it.

And basically, I continued to race because the doctor said it wasn't going to get any worse by riding.

It was just if I could put up with the pain.

And that was kind of a bit of a challenge almost.

I'm presuming you don't drink through the season because that can affect weight, et cetera, all year round.