Although it was made for the sprinters, stage 5 of the Volta a Catalunya proved somewhat hectic on Friday. Enzo Paleni initially led the way within the breakaway, from which he was even the last man standing. The young Frenchman was caught with about 20 kilometres to go, while echelons were about to happen. Clément Braz Afonso managed to follow the first peloton, then claimed eleventh place in the stage, just a few metres behind Briton Matthew Brennan.
With only one climb recorded, at the very beginning of the course, the elevation gain was clearly not the main challenge of the Volta a Catalunya’s fifth stage. On the other hand, a fairly strong wind was forecast, which gave some ideas to some riders. “I felt pretty good this morning and I was motivated to join the breakaway,” said Enzo Paleni. “It was certainly a stage made for the sprinters, but you never know what can happen. On top of that, the wind could potentially create some echelons and allow a small group to catch us.” “It could have been interesting,” confirmed Stéphane. “We had to see how the peloton would react, but for us it was a good way to get a nice result and, above all, to maintain the momentum we’ve had in the group since the start of this race. Enzo was going strong, he put on a great performance, but, as often, the peloton had the last word today.”
“I enjoyed today,” Enzo Paleni
On the attack within a group of seven men at first, the Groupama-FDJ rider never got a big advantage over the peloton. “We rode well at the beginning, but when we had to accelerate with eighty kilometres to go, no one was really able to do it,” said Enzo. “So I decided to push on, a rider from Euskaltel followed me, but I quickly found myself all alone. I rode twenty kilometres on my own, but facing a full peloton, there was nothing I could do.” He was caught before the last twenty kilometres, and the final battle took place in the crosswinds. “We had two riders in the right peloton with Tom and Clément,” added Stéphane. “It’s a shame because Tom was pushed on the grass and got knocked off the first echelon, otherwise we could have had two chances to finish in the top 10. He wanted to reassure himself. I think that he did; he felt better, even if this gust of wind prevented him from competing for a result.”In this tense final half-hour, Clément Braz Afonso managed to hold onto his place in a small pack of thirty riders. “He’s good at positioning himself, and his small build gives him a certain advantage,” said Stéphane. “He weaves through, he’s very energetic, so he can close gaps very quickly, and he doesn’t take a lot of wind. He certainly doesn’t have the same power as the bigger guys, but his agility allows him to save a lot of energy. That’s what allowed him to be at the front today.” The young Frenchman stayed there until the end, and was able to compete in the sprint, where he finished eleventh. “It was another good day,” claimed Stéphane. “There’s a big mountain stage tomorrow, which should decide the GC, but we’ll try to keep the same momentum this weekend and hope that the guys have recovered well.” The day’s attacker, Enzo Paleni, concluded: “I enjoyed today, and we’ll go for it again in the next two stages”.
