Twenty six year old Bury cyclist Simon Yates has been officially crowned the winner of the 2018 Vuelta a España today.
Yates crossed the line safely in Madrid to secure his first Grand Tour, with Spain’s Enric Mas second and Colombia’s Miguel Angel Lopez third,the third Brit to win a ground tour event in 2018 along with Chris Froom and Geraint Thomas.
It’s astonishing really,” Yates said to BBC Sport
“Growing up I was so accustomed to seeing the French, Italian and Spanish riders lead the way, so for myself, Chris and Geraint to all win a Grand Tour in the same year just shows how far the sport has come in this country.
“It’s been an unbelievable day. I really just enjoyed the moment, I don’t know what else you can do in those situations.
“When I turned professional I signed with the team and we had a really big ambition to win a Grand Tour and now we’ve achieved that. I put the hard work in, I persisted with the training and everything else that goes with it and now we’re here.
