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Britain’s Adam Yates starts this year’s Tour de France as one of the most important riders in the 176-strong peloton. Last year he won the opening stage and wore the yellow jersey, beating his twin brother Simon in the process. This year he is once again part of the UAE-Team Emirates squad which will help Tadej Pogacar try to make history by and Tour de France in the same year.

But Yates, 31, may not even have made it to cycling’s biggest race following a harrowing crash which caused a concussion. “I don’t really remember any of it, from the moment of impact to maybe an hour after,” says the former Ineos Grenadiers rider. In February’s searing Emirati heat, as Yates was dialling himself into the peloton for another long road cycling season during the UAE Tour, his front wheel appeared to clip a competitor’s, which saw Yates twist around and hit his head on the tarmac in violent fashion.



It was difficult to watch. “It was probably one of the worst crashes [I have had],” Yates says. “It was a nasty one.

I didn’t get much road rash but hit my head pretty hard. “When I kind of came to, I knew something wasn’t right.” Yates spent several weeks off the bike and only considered himself “conditioned” again following victory at this month’s Tour de Suisse.

“I was in great shape at the time and the UAE Tour was a big race for the team – a home race. “I had three weeks off the bike, which is like an off-season. It has not been easy.

” Head inju.

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