MY FIRST GRAND TOUR

This year saw a record number of Brits make their debuts in a Grand Tour. Chris Marshall-Bell spoke to them to find out what the experience was like

- Chris Marshall-Bell

Sixty thrilling stages of three Grand Tours were packed into just 71 days this autumn, with a record seven Britons making their debuts in racing’s most prestigious and longest undertakings.

Since the turn of the new millennium, 37 Brits have made their Grand Tour debuts. Until 2020 the highest in one year was in 2009, when the Giro d’Italia startlist featured Ben Swift, Ian Stannard and Dan Lloyd. At that year’s Vuelta a España, veteran Roger Hammond made his bow.

More than a decade later a new peak was reached with seven British riders riding their first Grand Tour. Arkéa Samsic’s Connor Swift made his Tour de France debut and chronicled his journey in CW, and Donovan had two types in the sun... and the rain he was followed by Lotto-Soudal duo Matt Holmes and Jon Dibben at the Giro d’Italia. At the Vuelta, BahrainMcLaren pairing Fred Wright and Stevie Williams joined Sunweb’s Mark Donovan and Harry Tanfield of Ag2rLa Mondiale.

Reflecting on their experiences, the debutants tell us about long, tiring but enjoyable days – and what exactly they think of the continent’s evident obsession with techno music.

Racing

It’s the pinnacle of the sport, but winning a stage of a Grand Tour isn’t the monumental task it may seem, according to Holmes, who finished third on stage eight of the Giro behind winner Alex Dowsett, the best result of any of this year’s debutants.