Pippa York hopes Oscar Onley betters her achievements after matching Tour de France record

Philippa York hopes Oscar Onley can surpass her achievements on the road after equalling the best ever finish for a Scottish cyclist in the Tour de France.

York, then known as Robert Millar, set the record by finishing fourth in the race back in 1984, and that stood alone for 41 years before being matched on Sunday.

The 22-year-old, from Kelso, narrowly missed out on a podium place when he finished one minute and 12 seconds behind third-placed Florian Lipowitz in his first attempt at the Tour last week.

After the race, Onley said the performance “sparked a dream” that he can achieve more in the future.

And York, now 66, agrees with that sentiment and will be cheering on her successor to achieve as much as he can in the sport, and in turn, encourage the next generation of Scottish cyclists.

Former Scottish cyclist Pippa York STV News

She said: “I’m just so glad that someone has come along, and I hope that he betters what I did. Because I know I was never the perfect athlete, and there were things that I didn’t have.

“I just hope that Oscar does better than I did, and the young kids coming through can look up to someone they can recognise, someone from their street, their town, their country. Because quite a lot of your motivation can come from that.

“You realise your limitations, and then you think, ‘I just need someone to come along who is a little bit stronger or a little bit faster here or there’, and I hope that’s going to be Oscar.”