Pidcock admits that the rumors about his transfer left him mentally exhausted and aims for a 2025 focused on the road

The British Tom Pidcock was one of the cyclists to watch in the Road Cycling event at the Paris Olympics, but his result ended up being a discreet 13th position just behind Van der Poel. After the race, he admitted that rumors about his departure from INEOS and winning gold in mountain bike had left him very fatigued.

Tom Pidcock admits he was mentally exhausted

After winning his second Olympic gold in mountain bike last Monday, Tom Pidcock competed in the road cycling race at the Paris Olympics on Saturday. A race in which he was not the top favorite but where he could stand out both for his abilities and the circuit. But it was not the case, and he was far from being in the medal fight.

After his victory over Koretzky, Pidcock has had an intense week in which he celebrated his birthday, now 25, and has been involved in controversy about his future which could involve leaving INEOS at the end of this season.

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"I was mentally exhausted with the Olympics and everything else", said Pidcock at the end adding that the rumors about his transfer were part of the problem. "Yes, that's why I'm mentally a bit exhausted".

"It was difficult to refocus" he said in relation to the mountain bike race he won on Monday after having to overcome a puncture that forced him to make a historic comeback. "That mountain bike race took a lot out of me, and I just didn't have that extra push". "I was a bit slow and I was never really in the right race". He explained after a day in which he was not seen in the race but managed to rely on talent and finish very close to the top 10 in the final part.

Pidcock could pause CX and MTB to focus on road

Remember that Tom Pidcock is among the highest-paid cyclists at the moment, just like the double Olympic champion in road and time trial Remco Evenepoel. In addition, both are two of the most sought-after possible star signings for 2025, and despite their representatives insisting they will not move from their current teams, Evenepoel has been wanted by INEOS for years and Pidcock is linked to the renowned Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe.

But while Evenepoel has shown his ability to be at the front in a grand tour, winning La Vuelta in 2022 and just securing a great third place in the Tour, Pidcock only has a spectacular stage victory at Alpe d'Huez in the Tour, and other wins in races like Strade Bianche and Amstel Gold Race.

Pidcock's potential on the road seems intact and despite his most important victories coming in cyclocross and mountain bike, where he already has several World Championships won, the British rider seems to have understood that those disciplines do not justify his salary and has hinted that in 2025 he could set them aside to focus on the road.