Queen congratulates Wiggins on Tour de France win

The day after winning the Tour De France Britain's Bradley Wiggins cycles on the road near his home in Eccleston ahead of the London 2012 Olympics, northern England July 23, 2012.

LONDON (Reuters) - Cyclist Bradley Wiggins has received the royal nod of approval for his success in the Tour de France, with Queen Elizabeth the latest Briton to congratulate him for what is being hailed as one of the country's greatest sporting achievements.

"I send you my warmest congratulations on becoming the first British cyclist ever to win the Tour de France," read the message on the queen's official website posted on Monday.

"Your historic achievement of claiming overall victory in this prestigious event is a great testament to the efforts of you and your teammates."

Wiggins' success, as well as teammate Chris Froome's second place finish on the tour, has boosted hopes of more cycling gold for Britain in the London Olympic Games.

In recognition of Britain's current domination in the sport, triple gold medal track cyclist Chris Hoy will carry the British flag at the opening ceremony on Friday.

Just 24 hours after completing the grueling 3,479-km race, Wiggins was back in the saddle on home soil preparing for the men's time-trial and road race events.

He spent a few hours with his family before hitting the roads around his home in Chorley, Lancashire, sporting the yellow helmet and sunglasses he wore during the Tour.

The road race in particular will take Wiggins over more historic territory and as the event whizzes by Buckingham Palace, he may even get a wave from the queen herself.

(Reporting by Mark Pangallo; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)