Tour de France winner vows to repeat feat with Olympic medal

Kilburn hero Bradley Wiggins is targeting ‘gold or nothing’ at the Olympics as he basks in the glory of his Tour de France triumph.

Wiggins became Britain’s very first Tour de France champion on Sunday, completing the 2,173-mile race three minutes and 21 seconds ahead of Team Sky colleague Chris Froome.

The 32-year-old triple Olympic track medallist and former St Augustine’s School pupil said the moment was ‘a dream come true’, and now wants to make the podium at London 2012.

Wiggins competes in the time trial which finishes at Hampton Court on August 1, but first turns his attention to Saturday’s road race, where he will attempt to help Mark Cavendish to glory.

And he admitted celebrations were on hold as he attempts to repeat his remarkable Paris success.

“Everything turns to the Olympics – I’ve got a time trial to try to win. If I’m 100 per cent honest, it’s gold or nothing in London now,” said Wiggins.

“That’s the way I’m treating the next few days. I’ve set a precedent now for performances.

“I can’t sit and say I’ll be happy with a silver, or happy with a bronze.”

Wiggins’ Tour de France triumph completed a fairy-tale story for the man who began his cycling career on the streets of Maida Vale and Kilburn.

He led an historic British one-two as Team Sky colleague Froome, who greatly assisted the Londoner throughout the three weeks to win the first prize of 450,000 Euros, finished a further three minutes and 21 seconds behind, while Liquigas-Cannondale’s Vincenzo Nibali from Italy was third.

Surreal

An emotional Wiggins, who is level with rowing legend Sir Steve Redgrave as the Briton with the most Olympic medals – six – described the victory as “job done really”.

He added: “I’ve got to get used to going into the history books now, but I’m just trying to take everything in first.

“It’s very surreal at the moment because this type of thing usually happens to other people. You never imagine it happening to yourself.

“I’ve watched the Tour since I was a kid, and all through the Miguel Indurain years. I imagined what winning the Tour would be like, but I never really believed it would happen.”

He now hopes to inspire a new generation of cyclists to follow his lead. He added: “If my win inspires someone else to do that, it would be incredible.”