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      My prized possession – 1994 Tour de France maillot jaune

      Meanwhile, back in down-at-heel Kilburn, I had no interest in anything but cycling. I was extremely ambitious, and my mind was set on winning Olympic gold on the track and wearing the yellow jersey on the road. Boardman had won the pursuit and now, in him and Sean, Britain had claimed two yellows in under a week! For me that was confirmation that it was possible, because I figured that if they could do it there was no reason why I couldn’t. My mind was made up, and by the end of 1995 I was up and running. I was winning quite often, and I too had a British champion’s jersey. It was only the junior points race, but it presaged another big moment in my cycling life.

      There was a prize-giving dinner, and of course everyone who’d won a title was invited. Robert Millar was present because he’d won the road race championship, but I seem to recall that Boardman was absent because he’d had a big off at the Tour and was convalescing. Sean was presenting the prizes, though, and what with me being at the bottom of the undercard I was first up onto the stage. I asked him to autograph the programme, and suffice to say this was the highlight not only of my cycling year but also of my fledgling career.