“

I know Philippe and I’ve worked with him on the two books he released. I got to know him when he was the biggest rider on earth. That was two years ago. He came to BMC in 2012 and his season was shit – I mean, he went OK for an average rider but for him it was the total opposite of the year before.

I was looking for a way to do the world championships differently because I’m very restricted. There’s only a few photographers who are on a motorbike in the race and all the rest are just carried around on a bus. I didn’t want to do that so I was looking for a way to do it differently.

So I contacted Philippe and I asked him “hey, wouldn’t it be great to follow you from the start of the day, when you wake up, brush your teeth and get your breakfast and get into your kit and go with the bus to the start? Wouldn’t it be great to follow your whole day from your room to your room, whatever happens?”

And he loved the idea. So I met him on the Wednesday at the TTT and he said “it’s a great idea let’s do it.” I didn’t expect him to turn out as world champion – I thought he might just have a chance at it. But I thought the story would be interesting.

But then I had to contact the national team and he was going to do that but after a few days he let me know “this is going to be too hard, getting through the national team”. And he said “you know what, it’s still a good idea, let’s do it some other time during the season.”

On Friday he let me know it was’t going to work for Sunday so we postponed that idea.

I was at the finish line when the announcer said “and there goes Gilbert!” when he was on the Cauberg. And right at that very moment it dawned on me “what an opportunity I have missed!” Really it was one of the biggest disappointments of that year.

He still had one or two kilometres to go after the Cauberg but [as soon as he attacked] I knew it. I was nearly crying – I was really happy for him but I was totally frustrated at the thing that wasn’t, me following him that day.

I was at the press conference an hour later than the finish. I don’t want to do the same shot as everyone else – guys at a table talking with a microphone in their hand. I don’t see much value in that. But one thing I’ve done before with Bradley Wiggins was to go behind the stage and see the backs of them addressing the world’s press.

And I was sitting there just waiting, getting my gear together and then I see Philippe turning towards me when he saw me. I wasn’t ready – I was still getting my gear together – so I just grabbed my camera and shot.

I didn’t have the lighting right but I shot the picture. I had to tweak it because it was underexposed quite a lot. But I got it, and it worked. And the good thing was it was the personal relationship – the picture was from him to me. He was giving something back to me – he remembered and he was saying “I’m sorry that it didn’t go through but here’s your picture.”

That’s not a picture that’s photographically amazing – but it’s the personal relationship and the story behind it that’s makes it a very valuable picture to me. He’s going straight into the camera in a situation he’s not supposed to.