After a 19-year career in which he achieved many important successes, Geraint Thomas has found his new identity within the team and since January 1st has become performance director at his Ineos Grenadiers. On Friday when Ganna won at the finish line in Vilamoura at the end of the 19.5 km time trial, Thomas was at the team buses waiting for him and celebrating the victory. Today the Welsh rider experiences cycling in a different way, he is no longer the one who needs to be faster than everyone else and he enjoys working to improve that group of riders of which he was also once a part

"Now I'm a race director in the team and that means I focus mainly on the individual preparation of the athletes – Thomas explained while following his squad at the Volta ao Algarve -. The general classification riders are a priority, but I also try to support the guys for the Classics like Ganna and Tarling. I try to ensure that everyone reaches their own objectives. It's an advantage knowing most of them for years. I have their trust. But I'm also there for the new arrivals, like Vauquelin or Onley".

Thomas is enthusiastic about his new role, he follows training sessions, races and also all the equipment that is used. "I don't have to tell the guys to do this or that, but I share my experience with them. Not just with the riders, but also with the coaches and sporting directors. In short: as a rider, for me it only mattered how fast I went; now it matters how fast the others go. I don't impose, but I give my opinion when they ask for it. I find the balance between being present and not getting into their business. As a rider, there's nothing more annoying than someone who starts asking all sorts of questions after a race".

After an uncertain season, the Ineos riders have started the season well with a series of victories already achieved and perhaps some of the credit goes to Thomas himself. "You'd have to ask them if I have a positive impact. I just try to be a sounding board when they need one. I don't claim to know all the answers, but I've seen and experienced a lot over the years. It's the riders who need to finish first, not me. That's the strange thing about my job. My success depends on how the others perform. It's no longer all in my hands. Yet, I feel more involved than I expected. When Carlos Rodriguez was leading the Tour de Provence but was beaten by Riccitello, I felt really bad. Especially because my best friend Luke Rowe was in the support car at Decathlon. Suddenly the knife was even deeper in the wound".

Nineteen years as a professional cyclist is a long time, and for this reason Thomas can truly boast extraordinary experience that he has decided to put at the service of the team. In his palmares there is the victory at the 2018 Tour de France and then second place in 2019 and also a second and third place at the Giro d'Italia, but also a track cycling past that led him to win the most important gold medals.

"Nineteen years in the professional peloton are enough for me. No, I don't miss racing and I'm really happy with my new role. I also see how the team is evolving again in the right direction, how everyone is pulling in the same direction. There's still a lot of work to do. We've started well, but it's only February and the real work still needs to begin".