Image 1 of 3 Geraint Thomas at the finish of stage 17. Image 2 of 3 Geraint Thomas (Team Sky) descending (Image credit: Courtesy of Polartec-Kometa) Image 3 of 3 Geraint Thomas (Team Sky) crosses the line after crashing on the descent

Geraint Thomas’ hopes and dreams of a top five placing in the Tour de France ended cruelly on stage 19 of the Tour de France to La Toussuire when he lost over 20 minutes and slipped to fifteenth but the Welshman was rightly proud of his own performance and that of the Team Sky squad. Any plans for Thomas to target the overall classification in a Grand Tour are still in their infancy but he has shown his potential and ability to target the cobbled Classics and then be strong in the Tour de France.

Thomas is expected to step into the role created by Richie Porte’s expected move to BMC and lead Team Sky in other stage races, be Froome’s last man on the key climbs of the Tour and could target the Giro d’Italia or Vuelta a Espana as an apprenticeship for a future Tour de France leadership role.

Any formal decision about Grand Tour leadership in 2016 will be made after celebrating this year’s victory.

“It’s a tough ask. Maybe. We’ll sit down after this and decide,” he said after reaching Alpe d’Huez.

“This race has certainly given me a lot of confidence for the future. Even I was surprised to being fourth going into stage 19. It’s mental. I knew I was climbing well after the Tour de Suisse and in training but doing it in the biggest race in the world is incredible.”



