Britain’s Tom Pidcock reacts jubilantly to record-breaking debut Tour de France stage win on iconic Alpe d’Huez

Britain’s Tom Pidcock is in ecstasy after pulling off a record-breaking debut win on the iconic Alpe d’Huez climb in Stage 12 of the Tour de France.

The 22-year-old team Ineos Grenadiers rider became the youngest in history to lead the field up the storied peak, breaking Colombian Luis “Lucho” Herrera’s 36-year-old record.

After completing his astonishing ascent, Pidcock was initially speechless. “I can’t explain it,” a slightly overwhelmed Pidcock said.

“It’s made my Tour de France. Even if I get dropped on every other day now I don’t care. Stage win in my first Tour, it’s not bad is it? It’s not bad.”

Pidcock gave a thrilling, magisterial display of descent riding, when he slashed a two-minute gap to the breakaway leaders, which he afterwards attributed to his school days.

“I rode to school every day. I always took a detour through the woods. You know, drifting through the woods in the mud. I’d come home and my uniform was all dirty. I guess I’ve just become very used to riding a bike and handling it in situations where it’s on the limit of control. I’ve a very good understanding of my bike as well. The tyre grip, and everything like that. I guess it kind of comes a bit naturally”, he said.

After the descent, Pidcock confronted the infamous climb alone.

With only a single rider on the road, the famously fearless French fans – in vintage form late on a scorching bank holiday Thursday – crowded in all around Pidcock.

The young Briton revelled in the pressure, saying “you have to just basically pray that everyone’s going to move out your way. It was the most ridiculous experience ever. To ride up Alpe d’Huez, probably one of the most iconic, if not the most iconic finish in cycling… at the head of the race? Yeah, that’s one of the best experiences of my life I think…That was certainly one of my best experiences in cycling – that was unreal. When you’re literally slaloming through people’s flags, fists and God knows what else, you can’t experience that anywhere else but Alpe d’Huez.”

Of course, despite his youth, Pidcock already has some serious achievements to compare with today’s record-breaking ride. At the delayed 2020 Olympic Games, Pidcock – then just 21 – claimed gold in the men’s cross-country mountain biking.

Earlier this year, in the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in Arkansas, Pidcock again won gold.

Now in his debut Tour de France, Pidcock has added an historic stage win, but his ambitions are not limited to this already impressive haul.

He admitted as much after today’s win, saying, “Yeah, I mean, I’ve won a stage of the Tour this year so I’m pretty satisfied. But I’m ambitious. I’m here to learn. I’ve learnt a hell of a lot. But yeah, I compare myself to (Tadej) Pogacar, to Wout (van Aert), these guys. I mean, they’re both older than me and more experienced. So yeah. But I am ambitious. And I think I have bigger ambitions in this race in the future for sure after this experience.”

Pidcock took a moment to reflect on the rider who followed him up the climb, fellow Briton Chris Froome.

“It was pretty nice getting across with Froome. We worked well together. He’s a legend and I just beat him up Alpe d’Huez. Maybe he’s not as fast as he once was, but he’s still Chris Froome, isn’t he?”

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