Simon Yates withdraws from Tour de France

British rider Simon Yates abandons 2014 Tour de France on second rest day - 21-year-old can be proud that he featured in two breaks during race

Simon Yates leads an escape on stage fourteen of the 2014 Tour de France Credit: Graham Watson

(Image credit: Graham Watson)

Simon Yates, after taking the late call-up in Leeds and escaping in two mountain stages, abandoned the Tour de France. The 21-year-old, first-year professional returned home and will not start on Tuesday when the race resumes after its second rest day.

"It was a once in a lifetime opportunity with the start in Yorkshire. Almost in my home training base basically and it's something I will never forget for the rest of my life," said Yates.

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Gregor Brown

Gregor Brown is an experienced cycling journalist, based in Florence, Italy. He has covered races all over the world for over a decade - following the Giro, Tour de France, and every major race since 2006. His love of cycling began with freestyle and BMX, before the 1998 Tour de France led him to a deep appreciation of the road racing season.