Dave Brailsford has paid tribute to the collective effort of those he oversees at British Cycling and Team Sky after he was knighted in the New Year Honours list.
The 48-year-old has received the honour at the end of a year in which he led Great Britain to eight cycling gold medals for a second successive Olympics and Team Sky to an historic one-two in the Tour de France.
On his knighthood for services to cycling and the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, Brailsford, who is British Cycling performance director and principal of Team Sky, said: "It is a bit surreal really.
"It is quite humbling and it really is something to try to get my head around.
"I'm very lucky and aware that the sport of cycling has grown and that we have had great success because it is a team effort over a long, long period of time."
Both Brailsford and Bradley Wiggins - who in July became the first British rider to win the Tour de France and then at London 2012 claimed his fourth Olympic gold medal - have received knighthoods in the list, four years after triple Beijing 2008 champion Sir Chris Hoy received his.
Brailsford has no doubt his two cycling colleagues are fully deserving of their honours, but admits he feels "a little bit uncomfortable" with his own.
"I can totally understand it with Chris when he won his three gold medals, or with Brad, because to have done what he has done is pretty amazing," Brailsford said.
"But I guess it does feel a little bit uncomfortable given the hard work that everyone puts in that there is an individual recognition rather than a group recognition.
"That is a bit of a challenge - but it is a great honour nevertheless."