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Ex-Tour de France Champion Geraint Thomas named Ineos Racing Director

Former Tour de France and Olympic champion Geraint Thomas has been named Ineos Grenadiers director of racing as struggling team make major reshuffle for 2026

Ex-Tour de France Champion Geraint Thomas named Ineos Racing Director

The move by Thomas, who won the Tour de France in 2018, has been long-expected and comes after a major management reshuffle at Ineos Grenadiers, under which the sports directors Zak Dempster and Oli Cookson moved to the revamped Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe team.
 
The 39-year-old Welshman retired from racing in summer 2025 after a glittering career.
 
Thomas, who last finished on a Grand Tour podium at the 2024 Giro d’Italia when he placed third to Tadej Pogacar, rode this year’s Tour de France and has a blend of stage racing and one-day racing experience.
 
"This team has been my home since day one, and stepping into this role feels like a natural next step," said Thomas, "I've learnt so much from the people around me - fellow riders and staff - and I now want to continue building on our incredible past success into the future."
 
Sir David Brailsford, who remains an influential figure at Ineos, said: "Geraint typifies what it means to be a Grenadier. He has lived and breathed elite performance throughout his career. He always set himself very ambitious goals and invariably went on to achieve them."
 
Brailsford’s long-standing working relationship with the Welshman has been key to his recruitment. “Geraint knows what the process takes, how to deal with the highs and lows of elite sport, and his willingness to now share this and mentor others to do the same is a great asset for the team,” Brailsford said.
 
Ineos won 28 races in 2025, up from their low of 14 in 2024, but have not won a Grand Tour since Egan Bernal at the Giro d'Italia in 2021.
 
“Ineos are not where they want to be, nor where they need to be and the gap is not small,” the aerodynamics guru Dan Bigham said, after announcing he was leaving the team in 2024.
 
Thomas was also successful on the track, winning Olympic gold in Beijing, China, in 2008 and London in 2012. He also enjoyed success for Wales at the Commonwealth Games. Thomas' career began in his home city of Cardiff as a child and ended there in September as the 2025 Tour of Britain concluded.
 
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