Yorkshire’s Olympic champion Tom Pidcock received a hero’s welcome on his return to competitive racing on home roads on Thursday but was unable to cap that with a victory on stage three of the Lloyds Bank Tour of Britain Men from Sheffield to Barnsley.

The 25-year-old from Leeds, who won a second Olympic gold in the mountain bike cross-country at Elancourt Hill outside of Paris just five weeks ago, wheeled home in sixth on County Way in Barnsley town centre behind Israel Premier Tech’s British rider Steve Williams.

It was a second successive stage win for Williams who has seized control of the race with three more days to come, with stage four beginning in Derby on Friday.

For Pidcock it was a third near-miss of the week after his bronze medal in the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship on Sunday and a fourth place in Kelso on stage one of the Tour of Britain.

Stevie Williams (Israel - Premier Tech) wins Stage 3 of the Lloyds Bank Tour of Britain 2024 in Barnsley, as Tom Pidcock follows home (Picture: Simon Wilkinson/SWPix.com)

Those would be classed as good results for most cyclists, but Pidcock is a natural-born winner and sets higher demands on himself - and accepts his status as an Olympic champion also comes with greater expectation.

“It is difficult of course it is, the levels are really high and you can’t go to bike races any more not 100 per cent,” he told The Yorkshire Post, having attempted to break clear for victory on the descent into Barnsley with 4km to go, only to be reeled in quickly by another rising British star in Joe Blackmore.

“That’s what’s so difficult, because I’m here a lot of people are looking at me, as well as the team, to perform and it’s difficult when I can’t do what people expect.

“I’ve got to live with it, yesterday I wanted to hide under a rock…”

Tom Pidcock (INEOS Grenadiers) has been in action in Yorkshire this week in the Tour of Britain (Picture: Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com)

That was after a disappointing day in the saddle on the ride into Redcar. Once again from Sheffield to Barnsley, the people of Yorkshire came out in support for Pidcock and the rest of the peloton.

While such support is not lost on Pidcock, he is desperate to taste victory again soon, although a flatter profile on the final three days of this race means it may be difficult to do so in his home country.

“It’s a massive thing representing your country, and the Olympics is one of the highest accolades you can achieve. But things move on so fast in cycling,” said the Ineos Grenadiers rider, who heads to Canada, Italy and the world championships to finish his road campaign in 2025.

“You want to try and replicate that at every race you come to, that’s why the team work so hard to try and back that up, but it’s just not always possible.

“I need time to get back into the shape I know I can be in.

“I really want to try and win a race now before the end of the season, that’s a big goal of mine.”

Tour of Britain: Tom Pidcock looking to rediscover winning feeling after near-miss in Yorkshire