From Bredene to Koksijde, “La Conti” Groupama-FDJ experienced a typical Belgian race this Friday in the Youngster Coast Challenge. A few hills, a few cobblestones, and above all, a lot of wind featured in the 170-kilometre race. At the front throughout the whole day, Eliott Boulet eventually placed fifteenth in a small bunch sprint.
An extremely strong U23 field was on the start line this Friday in the seventh edition of the Youngster Coast Challenge, held a few hours before its “big sister,” the Bredene Koksijde Classic. Like the latter, it included the Baneberg-Monteberg-Kemmelberg sequence, but only once, and with about 100 kilometres to go. “We didn’t have a pure sprinter at the start, but given the wind direction, we knew it wasn’t going to end in a real bunch sprint,” explained Jérôme Gannat. “The goal was to make the race harder on the Kemmelberg loop and establish a breakaway.” Yet, the race proved very eventful even before reaching the climbs, as a big crash led to the race being suspended after thirty minutes. “There was a lot of tension because everyone was worried about the expected echelons at kilometre sixteen,” Jérôme said. “It created a lot of stress and quite a few crashes, including one that brought about thirty riders to the ground”. No rider from “La Conti” was involved, and the race resumed shortly after, in quite a spectacular way.
“The group is gradually improving,” Jérôme Gannat
“Right after the crash, we hit a section with crosswinds, there was a strong acceleration, but also a few crashes that contributed to form echelons,” explained Jérôme. “We lost Baptiste, who was in the first group, but he had to change bikes because he had several broken spokes.” Ultimately, only Eliott Boulet found himself in the first “bunch” of around twenty riders. On the Kemmelberg, a second peloton established in the back with Maxime Decomble. “After the series of climbs, the wind was mostly tailwind towards Koksijde,” explained Jérôme. “So it was very fast, and they actually had an average speed of over 47 km/h over 170 kilometers. Maxime’s group was about a minute behind after the Kemmelberg, they closed to within twenty-five seconds at De Moeren, then bridged across with about thirty kilometres to go”. On the Koksijde circuit, a third group including Reef Robert managed to come back as well, resulting in a peloton of around sixty men for the final. “Maxime bravely tried to break away, but it was too complicated because there were many teammates to pull,” explained Jérôme Gannat.In the end, the favorite Sente Sentjens claimed victory in the sprint. Eliott Boulet joined the fight and took fifteenth place, with Reef Roberts rounding out the top 20. “Eliott was out front all day, and that’s perhaps what prevented him from doing a bit better,” concluded Jérôme. “We’re still in a learning process. It was a typical Belgian race, with wind, the De Moeren section, cobblestones, and bergs. There was everything. For some, it was also a first experience on this terrain. We also had different profiles in the team, with riders like Rémi and Maxime, who are not specialists of echelons, but it is necessary to practice for the future. Even if the result is not incredible, we saw some positive things. The boys were more protagonists than during the first weekend of racing, and that is important. We feel that the group is gradually improving even if there is still a lot to do and learn”.
