Marcel Kittel of Giant Shimano said that his victory came on a really special day.
There were crowds of two million on the roads from Leeds to Harrogate, the biggest for a cycle race in this country, with 33,000 people travelling out of Leeds station to Harrogate for the finish according to police.
Kittel snatched victory in Harrogate and said about his win to his press office: "It was a really special day today - the supporters lining the roads were incredible. I am so proud and this means so much to me that we made it happen.
"The jersey is for the team after the job they did today and all the fans out there supporting us also deserve a slice.
"We worked so hard for it - everyone pulled just as they should and even with a slight reshuffle in the sprint formation at the end we got it perfect.
"John [Degenkolb] and Koen [De Kort] pulled through the last few hundred metres of the lead-out and then I had to go for it as Sagan launched.
"We got it right again today and it was a real team effort. It's a special day."
Picture copyright of Covsupport News Service