Tokyo Olympics: Tom Pidcock wins mountain bike gold for GB

Last update on. From the section OlympicsTokyo Olympic Games on BBC Dates: 23 Jul-8 Aug Time in Tokyo: BST+8. Listen live on BBC TV, BBC iPlayer and BBC Red Button; Listen live on BBC Radio 5 Live, Sports Extra, and Sounds; Live text and video clips available on BBC Sport app and website.With a dominant performance in cross-country mountain biking, Tom Pidcock won the third Olympic gold for Great Britain at the Tokyo Games.The 21-year old Leeds man moved into the lead mid-race and didn't relinquish it. He finished ahead of Mathias Flueckiger, the Swiss world number 1, and David Valero, from Spain, to win Britain's first ever gold medal in the sport.Pidcock won the race two months after breaking his collarbone during training.Six days after his surgery, he was back on his bike and declared that he would win in Tokyo.He trained in a heated tent at his home to prepare for the heat. His performance was impressive as he handled the harsh course and conditions much better than the field and finished 20 seconds ahead.His dominance was so strong that he was able unfurl a union Jack and wave it at the finish line.Pidcock stated that "I am always more productive when I have control over my own actions." I set my own pace and follow my own lines. I felt fine once we started. I let my nerves go and focused on the race."It's not like any other race. The Olympics transcends all sports. No matter what sport they choose, you compete to represent your country. Everyone in your country supports you. It's not just national pride. It's amazing."Pidcock's win follows those of Adam Peaty and Tom Daley in Monday's 100m breaststroke, and Matty Lee and Matty Lee in Monday's men's synchronised platform diving 10m.Mathieu van den Poel, a Dutchman, led the mountain biking race through the first stages. Then it was overturned in dramatic fashion.Later, he tweeted external-link that there was originally a plank on one side of the rock from where he expected to land after a jump.Pidcock has added an Olympic title on a long list of honors. He won the world titles in cyclocross, road, and mountain biking events at under-23 levels.Pidcock, who rides for Ineos Grenadiers, said, "I trained really hard. I knew that I was in good shape. But there's always doubt when it comes to my performance in a race.""I had high expectations of myself, but I delivered."He is the first Briton ever to win an Olympic medal in mountain biking. The previous best GB had was a fifth-place finish by Liam Killen at Athens 2004,Pidcock turns 22 this Friday. He is the youngest Olympic mountain biking champion and broke the record set at Rio 2016 in Sweden by Jenny Rissveds by 79 days.