Great Britain cycling team technical director Shane Sutton believes it is Sir Bradley Wiggins’ determination and application that makes him one of Britain’s best ever athletes.
Wiggins picked up his first ever road world title when he claimed an enthralling time trial victory at the World Championships in Ponferrada on Wednesday.
He beat three-time champion Tony Martin into second place by a margin of 26.23 seconds and with it added a world road rainbow jersey to the six he has won on the track.
Among other notable achievements for the 34-year-old are the seven Olympic medals he has accumulated on the bike, including gold in the London 2012 time trial just ten days after becoming the first British man to win the Tour de France.
He recently announced that this week would be his last Road World Championships, and has set his sights on breaking the world hour record next year as well as a return to the track for Rio 2016.
And Sutton believes it is the cyclist’s hard-working attitude which sets him apart.
"It's unquestionable,” said Sutton. “Brad Wiggins isn't just Britain's greatest all-round cyclist - a guy that's won the Tour, won the Olympic time trial, won Olympic pursuit, Olympic team pursuit - he's probably one of Britain's greatest all-time athletes.
“He's just very good at going away and putting his mind to something when he wants to win something.
"It is all about application and he applied himself just as he did when he won the Tour.
"He sows a seed across all of the cycling fraternity. He shows that if you apply yourself you can achieve greatness and Brad's done that.”
© Sportsbeat 2014