Puncture, collision and boos: How Tom Pidcock won dramatic Olympic mountain bike gold at Paris 2024

Sign up to our free sport newsletter for all the latest news on everything from cycling to boxing Sign up to our free sport email for all the latest news Sign up to our free sport email for all the latest news SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Tom Pidcock lost the race to a puncture, won it back, then lost it again to the determined Frenchman Victor Koretzky before pulling off a do-or-die overtake around a tree to defend his Olympic title. Koretzky had watched Pidcock’s race dismantle firsthand as he took the lead, so what must he have thought when he turned a hairpin four laps and 40 minutes later to see Pidcock reincarnated? They came together and made contact, Koretzky’s left foot was briefly dislodged from his pedal, and Pidcock sped away to emotional glory. open image in gallery Pidcock had to make his way back through the field “Bruno wasn’t ready in the pits but he did a fast change, and I knew at that point I had almost five laps, that’s almost 50 minutes, so I thought, anything’s possible.” So Pidcock proved.