Exmouth cyclist William Tidball is a world champion after a sensational victory in the Scratch race of the World Track Championships in Glasgow.

Tidball bided his time in a tense race and stayed patient behind the main bunch for much of the 60-lap race in a packed Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome. Dutchman Roy Eefting-Bloem led the main charge for the line and Tidball stayed with him all the way before powering to victory in the final two laps.

“It’s the stuff dreams are made of,” the Saint-Piran rider told Cycling Weekly. “I visualised winning here, and to do it was even better than I visualised. It’s pretty amazing. I can’t really believe this is really happening, to be honest."

Proudly adorning the Devon flag in homage to his Exmouth roots, Tidball explained that his plan was to stay hidden during the race. "Hopefully the cameras didn’t notice me, hopefully the commentators didn’t really mention me,” he said. “I saved my bullet for the end, gambled that I’d get on a fast wheel like I did, and then went from there. If I had it, I had it. If I didn’t, I didn’t. But luckily, I did."