GERAINT Thomas said age is just a number after finishing third in Rome in the Giro d'Italia on Sunday – days after turning 38.

The Welsh 2018 Tour de France winner – who named the Blorenge Tumble as one of his favourite hill climbs in his book Mountains According to G – made the podium for the second year running after just missing out in second to Primoz Roglic by 14 seconds last year.

It could be his last tour as a team leader, although he is set to race the Tour de France with Ineos Grenadiers next month.

And he joined champion Tadej Pogacar and runner-up Daniel Martinez on the podium with four-year-old son Macs in the shadow of the Colosseum, champagne corks popping in the evening sunshine.

“It makes it all worthwhile, all that sacrifice,” Thomas told BBC Sport Wales. “You commit to it, you spend a lot of time away from home and with the diet and stuff you’re not necessarily always in the best mood...

“It’s a bit of a cliché but age is just a number. If you’re committed to it and do all the right things, you can continue to race at the top and I’ve proved that.

"The sacrifices and all that time away, when you achieve something it’s extra special,” added Geraint, who finished third in the Tour de France in 2022, following on from his 2018 victory and 2019 second place.

“When I won the Tour, Macs was born a year and a bit after that, and I thought it would be a shame if he never remembered me being on a bike, never mind being half decent,” he added.

“But the fact he’s been on three Grand Tour podiums now is pretty special and we’ll always have those pictures.”