 Yates in 2009 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Sean Yates |
| Nickname | The Animal |
| Born | (1960-05-18)18 May 1960 (age 64) Ewell, Surrey, England |
| Team information | |
| Current team | Retired |
| Discipline | Road |
| Role | Rider |
| Amateur teams | |
| ? | Archer Road Club |
| 1980 | 34th Nomads |
| 1981 | ACBB |
| Professional teams | |
| 1982–1986 | Peugeot |
| 1987–1988 | Fagor |
| 1989–1990 | 7-Eleven |
| 1991–1996 | Motorola |
| Managerial teams | |
| 1998–2001 | Linda McCartney Racing Team |
| 2002 | iTeamNova.com |
| 2003–2004 | Team CSC |
| 2005–2007 | Discovery Channel |
| 2008–2009 | Astana |
| 2010–2012 | Team Sky |
| 2014 | NFTO |
| 2015–2016 | Tinkoff–Saxo |
| Major wins | |
Grand Tours
| |
Sean Yates (born 18 May 1960) is an English former professional cyclist anddirecteur sportif.
Yates competed at the1980 Summer Olympics, finishing sixth in the4,000m individual pursuit.[1] As an amateur in 1980, he won the British 25-mileindividual time trial championship, and took the national record for 10-mile time trials with 19m 44s.
As an amateur Yates rode forAthletic Club Boulogne-Billancourt in Paris, Europe's most successfulsports club with fellow British riders Kevin Reilly from Southport,John Herety andJeff Williams.[2] Yates first race for theACBB was the Grand Prix de Saint-Tropez which he won by riding off the front of thepeloton.[3] Yates won fifteen races in total for theACBB and also finished third in the prestigiousindividual time trialGrand Prix des Nations which was won byMartial Gayant.[3] Yates had developed a reputation as a strong time trialist and for an incredible turn of speed and power.[2] He turned professional in 1982 forPeugeot riding alongsideGraham Jones,Phil Anderson,Robert Millar andStephen Roche. He stayed withPeugeot for six seasons and became British professionalindividual pursuit champion in 1982 and 1983.
In 1988 riding forFagor, he won the sixth stage of theTour de France, a 52 km time-trial, beatingRoberto Visentini by 14 seconds andTony Rominger by 23 seconds. That year he also won a stage at theVuelta a España,Paris–Nice, Midi-Libre and finished fourth overall in theTour of Britain.
In 1989 he joined the American team,7-Eleven and took two stages and overall victory in theTour of Belgium, won theGrand Prix Eddy Merckx and finished second inGent–Wevelgem. In 1991 Yates then moved toMotorola, where he rode withLance Armstrong. During stage six of the1994 Tour de France Yates got into a breakaway and took the overall lead by one second overGianluca Bortolami. He became only the thirdBriton to wear theyellow jersey. He wore it for one day and after Bradley Wiggins won the 2012 Tour de France he sold it to him; this has become Wiggins' most prized possession in his collection.[4]
Yates retired in 1996 having competed in 12 Tours, completing nine; 45th was his best placing overall.
Yates spent much of his 15-year career as adomestique. He was powerful on flat stages and noted as a descender of mountains. For arouleur Yates climbed very well for his weight.
In 1989, Yatestested positive foranabolic steroids in a doping test in the first stage of Torhout-Werchter.[5] However, his 'B' sample did not confirm the 'A' sample[6] and Yates was subsequently cleared because it was accepted that a labelling error must have occurred and the tested sample was not his.[7]
Following the report in October 2012 from the US Anti-Doping Agency that detailed organised doping in the US Postal/Discovery Channel teams, Yates insisted on BBCRadio 5 Live that he saw nothing suspicious during his six years working alongsideLance Armstrong.[8]
After retiring in 1996, Yates became manager of theLinda McCartney Racing Team, which competed at theGiro d'Italia. After the team's collapse in 2001, Yates helped set up the Australian iteamNova but left after funds ran out. After six months out of cycling, he joined Team CSC-Tiscali before moving to Discovery, in 2005, at the invitation ofLance Armstrong. In June 2007, Yates was manager ofTeam Discovery a USA team and, in 2008, went on to manage riders on theAstana cycling team.
In 2009, he was signed up as director of the newly formedTeam Sky, a British-based team intent on providing Britain's firstTour de France winner. Yates spent three years as the team's lead Director Sportif and, in 2012, presided overBradley Wiggins' victories inParis–Nice,Tour de Romandie,Critérium du Dauphiné,Tour de France and theOlympic Time Trial. However, his race support during the2012 Tour de France was heavily criticised byMark Cavendish who described Yates as "cold, uninspiring and miserly in praise."[9]
In October 2012, he left Team Sky and retired from cycling,[10] with theDaily Telegraph reporting that Yates had been forced to quit after admitting involvement in doping, meaning he did not meet the team's zero tolerance stance on doping.[11] Both Sky and Yates denied these claims with Yates stating that the decision to resign was based on ill health and a desire to spend more time with his family.[12]
After a year away from the sport, Yates took the position ofdirecteur sportif for the NFTO team from the 2014 season.[13] Subsequently, Yates clarified that this role would be limited to the first three rounds of thePremier Calendar and theTour Series. He was also involved in coaching the Catford CC-Equipe Banks under-23 team, which includes his son Liam on its roster.[14] He was one of their sports directors forTeam Tinkoff–Saxo in the 2015 and 2016 seasons.[15]
Since relocating to Spain, he has worked part time as a coaching consultant.[16]
In 1997, he won the British 50-mile time-trial championship, and he finished third in the same event in 2005. In May 2007, he said he would not compete as a veteran because of heart irregularities.
In 2009, he was inducted into theBritish Cycling Hall of Fame.[17]
In late 2016, Yates had an accident in the course of doing part-time gardening work, and was hospitalised for several weeks. This delayed his plan to move to a small farm nearUseras in Spain, where he was living as of June 2020.[16]
In 2022 he was givenCycling Weekly's Lifetime Achievement award, recognising not only his multiple achievements but also a lifetime involvement in the sport.[18]
OverallTour of Belgium
Road race, National Road Championships
after Stage 6
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
