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Geraint Thomas wins Tour de France, Chris Froome finishes third

By Alex Butler
Geraint Thomas of Great Britain celebrates on the presentation podium after winning the Tour de France in Paris on Sunday. Photo by David Silpa/UPI
1 of 6 | Geraint Thomas of Great Britain celebrates on the presentation podium after winning the Tour de France in Paris on Sunday. Photo by David Silpa/UPI | License Photo

July 29 (UPI) -- England's Geraint Thomas won the 2018 Tour de France, edging second place finisher Tom Dumoulin by 1:51 seconds on Sunday in Paris.

Dumoulin won stage 20, beating Froome and Thomas in stage 20 on Saturday. Alexander Kristoff won stage 21 on Sunday, edging John Degenkolb and Arnaud Demare from Houilles to Paris.

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Team Sky has now won six of the last seven Tour de France titles. Froome won the race in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2017.

"I've not got a good track record with speeches so I'll keep it short," Thomas said after the victory. "I just want to say thanks to the team, they've just been incredible for the whole three weeks."

"Big respect to Froomey, obviously it could have got awkward, there could have been tension, but you've been a great champion and I'll always have respect for you."

Thomas is the first Welshman to win the Tour de France.

"I'm pretty tired," Thomas said. "Just the whole team was incredible, the staff as well. I got into cycling because of this race. I remember running home from school to watch the end of the Tour de France. The dream was always just to be a part of it. Now I'm here in the yellow jersey. It's just insane. It's a dream come true. Massive respect to Tom as well and all my rivals ... It's just a dream. I just want to say a final thanks to the crowd. You've just been amazing. The amount of support I've got. Oh, and my wife."

"Kids, just dream big. If people tell you it can't be done, keep going and believe in yourself. With hard work, everything pays off in the end."

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