Veteran racer Luke Rowe has announced that he'll call time on his career at the end of the season, marking the end of a 13-year pro career.
The Welshman has raced with Team Sky and Ineos Grenadiers since turning pro in 2012, specialising in the cobbled Classics and also as one of the peloton's top road captains as his career has progressed.
The 34-year-old had been set to retire at the end of the 2025 season but brought forward his retirement date to the end of the current campaign. He said that his latest crash at the E3 Saxo Classic and the resulting injuries had helped him take the decision.
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"I've had an amazing career and I have absolutely no regrets," Rowe said. "But the last 18 months have been testing in different ways and with this latest crash and resulting injury, it just feels like now is the right time to bow out, head home to Wales and spend a bit more time with my family."
He added that he's hoping to get back on the bike before ending his career, with an appearance on home turf at the Tour of Britain (September 1-8) the goal for his final race.
"For now, I am focusing on recovering from this latest injury and working with the team and doctors to try and get back on the bike," he said. "I have the rest of the season left and would like to race again in 2024 - with the Tour of Britain being my dream race to end on.
"The fans around the world have always been amazing but it would be pretty special to end my career racing around the UK in front of home fans."
Rowe has taken two wins as a pro – a stage apiece at the 2012 Tour of Britain and the 2017 Herald Sun Tour – and he also has top-10 finishes at Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders to his name.
However, his biggest achievements have come as a road captain and domestique, helping guide teammates to wins at the biggest races on the calendar.
Among his 10 Grand Tour starts, Rowe has been part of five Tour de France wins, three for Chris Froome and one apiece for Geraint Thomas and Egan Bernal. He's also been part of the squad behind Michał Kwiatkowski's win at Milan-San Remo and Dylan van Baarle's Paris-Roubaix triumph.
"I've got so many amazing memories and I have loved every part of being a professional cyclist," Rowe said. "There are so many people who have played a key role in my career – too many to thank individually.
"Obviously huge thanks to my family and friends, but I'd also like to thank everyone in the Ineos Grenadiers, many of whom are also like family. I've been incredibly lucky to spend all 13 years as a pro bike rider with one team and it's been a team who has supported me 100% through the good times and the bad.
"Their commitment and support to their athletes is world class and it's part of the reason I have never wanted to race for anyone else."
Ineos Grenadiers CEO John Allert paid tribute to Rowe on and off the bike, calling him "a massive part of what makes the team so special" and praising him for "passing down his wisdom, experience and tactical knowledge" to young riders on the squad.
"Luke is a massive part of what makes this team so special. He has been here since the very start and has played a huge part in our biggest wins and some of the most iconic moments in the team's history," Allert said.
"Not only is Luke a fearless, gritty, powerhouse of a racer who can read and control a race like few other riders, he's a fantastic personality and team-mate off the bike too. In the last few years, he has been a willing mentor to our younger riders, passing down his wisdom, experience and tactical knowledge.
"We are all going to miss Luke, but he'll always be a Grenadier, and I'm sure [he] has a bright future working in some aspect of the sport he loves so much. I'm sure I speak for everyone who has ever worked with Luke, when I say thanks for everything and good luck with the remainder of the season."
