Giant Welsh Cake Cooked Up For Golden Geraint
Posted at 09:09 on 19 September 2012
Double gold medal-winning cyclist Geraint Thomas has been served up a giant Welsh cake fit for an Olympic champion.
Thomas, who landed gold with Great Britain’s team pursuit in the velodrome, made no secret of his love for Welsh cakes when he stayed at Celtic Manor for a pre-Games training camp.
In honour of his success, the five-star resort’s pastry chef Amit Kumar cooked up a dinner plate-sized Welsh cake topped with a gold medal made from edible icing.
It was presented to Thomas, who also scooped gold in the team pursuit at Beijing in 2008, when he returned to Celtic Manor for a more relaxing stay after a hectic few weeks during which he has returned to racing on the road.
“This is amazing,” said Thomas of the nine-inch diameter cake. “I’ve always loved Welsh cakes and I put a picture on Twitter when we stayed here before the Olympics, saying how nice it was to get them as a welcome gift in our rooms.
“It’s great to come back and put my feet up this time, and I still love the Welsh cakes. I’m really looking forward to tucking in to this bad boy!”
Once Thomas had set the Twitter wheels in motion, it was not long before a number of his track cycling team-mates joined in the celebration of Welsh cakes as they trained at the nearby Newport Velodrome.
Joanna Rowsell, who went on to win gold in the women’s team pursuit, tweeted: “Welsh cakes in my room tonight :) Possibly my favourite thing from Wales!”
Even Sir Chris Hoy, now Britain’s most successful Olympian with six gold medals, was prompted to reply “best part of the day!” on the social network.
In addition, double London gold medallist Laura Trott mentioned the treats last week when she named Celtic Manor as her “Best Hotel” in a travel article for a UK national newspaper.
Extra portions of the Welsh cakes, always popular with Celtic Manor’s VIP guests, were rushed to the rooms of the cyclists to cope with the demand.
“It’s strange how many people from outside Wales have never heard of them,” added Thomas. “But it doesn’t usually take very long to convince them how delicious they are!”
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