British Rider Wins First Stage Of Tour De France After Pipping His Twin Brother To The Line

The opening stage of the 2023 Tour de France got underway today and ended in a thrilling two-rider finish between two British riders on opposing teams.

Saturday, July 1, saw an incredible first stage with two British riders, 30-year-old twin brothers Adam and Simon Yates, riding for opposing teams and sprinting to the line for the chance to pull on the iconic yellow jersey.

Today’s stage was a 182-kilometre round trip starting and finishing in Bilbao, in Basque Country. It was one of the toughest opening stages for years with over 3000 metres of climbing.

First across the line was Adam riding for UAE Team Emirates, with Simon (Jayco AlUla) a mere four seconds behind.

With three weeks of racing to go anything can happen, but today’s finish puts Adam in a strong position. Tour favourite, and Adam’s co-team leader, Tadej Pogacar came in third and was elated to see his teammate claim victory, raising his arms as he crossed the finish.

After the win, a modest Adam seemed to downplay his position as co-leader and insisted he was there to support teammate Pogačar.

Speaking to ITV4, winner Adam said: ‘Being in the yellow jersey is no problem. It’s an honour and a privilege to have yellow. Over the next few weeks I’m gonna help Tadej try to win, he’s shown he’s the best win the world over the last couple of years in all disciplines and we’re gonna fight for every second.’

The next British rider to finish some 33 seconds behind Yates was Leeds-born Tom Pidcock, 23, riding for British Based team Ineos Grenadiers.

Tomorrow’s stage stays in in the Basque Country, with another tough 209 kilometres from Vitoria-Gasteiz to San Sebastian.

The Bury-born Yates brothers are the first to achieve such a feat since Luxembourgers Andy and Frank Schleck finished 1-2 on stage 18 in the 2011 Tour.