The 22-year-old Orica-Scott rider clenched his fists and let out an audible roar as he crossed the finish line under the lights of Yas Marina Circuit safely in first place.
It was a nice way to end the Tour for the young Aussie after he raised his arms in premature celebration on Friday’s Stage 2 thinking he had won the stage, only to admit a rookie error that saw him pipped by half a bike wheel on the line at Al Marina which engulfed him in embarrassment.
Ewan admitted the error had been playing on his mind and he joked with reporters after his victory that he kept cycling well beyond the line just to make sure he had been successful.
“I think I sprinted past the line just to make sure,” he added, after claiming the final stage win of the Tour ahead of Team Dimension Data rider Mark Cavendish and Lotto Soudal’s Andre Greipel.
“It did go through my mind the whole race (not to raise my arms at the line), to make sure I sprint the whole way past the line just to make sure there was no repeat of Stage 2. “
It had been a nightmare start to the Tour for the youngster. A crash on the opening stage saw him finish well down the field, and then came his horrible mistake the following day.
Despite last night’s win, Ewan admitted the thought of coming away with two stage wins will stay with him for a while.
“I’ll forget about the crash obviously. There’s still a bit of disappointment at the fact I could’ve had two stage wins,” he said.
“I think it’s more disappointing that it wasn’t a fault in my form or performance, it was a really silly mistake and I think it will annoy me for a little bit, but it would annoy me more if I didn’t win today.
“But winning today and beating those guys will help me get over that al lot easier.”
Ultimately, Ewan was just pleased he could make up for Friday’s mistake with his hard-working team-mates.
“It feels great to get the win and repay my team for what I did on Friday,” he added.
“To be honest, after the (second) stage I was a bit worried they’d be angry with me but they all laughed it off. I think if I had done it again today then there would’ve been a problem.
“They’re a great bunch of people and they probably knew I was bashing myself up over it. They were joking around a little bit but it was all good.”
