Geraint Thomas: Romandie uphill TT will be decisive
24 April 2018 06:06
Geraint Thomas (Team Sky) resumed his stage racing campaign at the Tour de Romandie with a solid sixth place in the opening 4.3-kilometre time trial. The British all-rounder finished five seconds down on stage winner Michael Matthew (Sunweb) but put time into a number of potential GC rivals, including Richie Porte (BMC Racing) and Dan Martin (UAE Team Emirates). The course through the heart of Fribourg may have been short but it was punctuated with technical sectors, climbs, and cobbles. Thomas opted for a complete time trial set up in the end, after following teammate Luke Rowe in the car during the Welshman's race effort. The homework paid off. "There was a lot to think about and that was a hard last final 800m. I think that I rode it okay, and got it all out, but looking back you always think that there were a few corners that you could have taken quicker," Thomas told Cyclingnews and Eurosport at the line.ADVERTISEMENT Thomas arrived at the Tour de Romandie having raced a short Classics campaign. He crashed out of Paris-Roubaix but made it to the finish at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. It was his first complete race since Tirreno-Adriatico in mid-March. "I needed Liège in my legs really because it's been a while since racing. It was a tough course today though. Explosive, and bang, once you're out there it's done. It was like a track effort really." Thomas is targeting the Tour de France this summer, although his role in the race remains unclear due to Chris Froome's salbutamol case. Froome could be sanctioned before the Tour if he is found to have violated the rules, and could miss the Tour as a result.
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