Stage 5 of Paris-Nice, on Thursday, seemed to be the last opportunity for the sprinters in the “Race to the Sun”. They therefore did the best they could to grab this opportunity. The teammates of the green jersey Laurence Pithie also did their part, in particular David Gaudu who managed to control a dangerous breakaway. In the final sprint, the New Zealander was unable to repeat his previous performances and had to settle for eighth place. He also gave the green jersey away to Mads Pedersen but remains ambitious for Friday’s stage towards La-Colle-sur-Loup.
While the general classification got clearer on Wednesday to Mont Brouilly, the outcome of Paris-Nice’s stage 5 looked unsure this Thursday. 193 kilometres were to be covered, with a quite demanding portion in the middle of the day. “We had to pay attention if big groups went away at the start, because we know that it can always be tricky on Paris-Nice,” said Benoît Vaugrenard. “In addition, the last 70 kilometers were almost completely slightly downhill”. Yet, it only took five kilometres for Pierre Latour, Dries De Bondt, Mathijs Paasschens, Mathias Norsgaard, Sandy Dujardin and Alexis Gougeard to hit the front. The peloton still proved attentive and limited their lead to three minutes. “Lidl-Trek and Tudor made the pace, but when we got to the hilly part, they came back too close, and two Lotto-Dstny riders attacked from the bunch,” explained Benoît Vaugrenard. “There was a bit of panic because there were then eight in front, and it wasn’t just anyone.” Eighty kilometres from the finish, Victor Campenaerts and Pascal Eenkhoorn indeed joined the breakaway, one minute ahead of the pack. In the back, Groupama-FDJ took their responsibilities right away. “When Campenaerts and Eenkhoorn went, David instantly said on the radio: “I’m going to ride,” testified Laurence Pithie. “He went to the front and started pulling full gas. It was really cool”.
“It’s a fair return”, David Gaudu
In a sequence of three third category climbs, the French climber sacrificed himself for his young teammate. “David took the initiative, and he did well,” said Benoît. “It was important not to let the breakaway take two minutes, in which case it was over. David kept them at one minute, and that also allowed us to ride fast to get rid of De Kleijn and Jakobsen. That was a great point. David also needed to make some efforts, that did him good”. “It’s always important to get the body back on track after a crash,” explained the man from Brittany. “I rode on a portion of ups and downs for an hour. I wanted to do it this morning, if it was necessary. It’s also a fair return to Laurence for what he did yesterday.” At the top of the last classified climb of the day, 47 kilometres from the finish, the peloton was just one minute behind the eight leaders. “It’s super motivating when you see a big leader like him riding in front for you,” said Laurence. “I think without him and Sam doing the work, we might not have caught that group, because they were really flying.” In the long, descending false flat leading to Sisteron, Sam Watson did contribute to the chase and allowed the bunch to cross the line for the first time, with 11 kilometres to go, only ten seconds behind the fugitives.
“I’ll be able to give it a good go tomorrow”, Laurence Pithie
The breakaway’s attempt eventually ended in a short one-kilometre hill right after, where Quentin Pacher first tried to attack. Laurence Pithie then followed Mads Pedersen and came at the top in the very first positions. Remco Evenepoel also made an attempt, but the bunch got back together for the final. “The guys did a super job again, especially Quentin, Kevin, Sven and Clément in the final,” said Benoît. Under the flamme rouge, Clément Russo made the effort to position the green jersey, which then settled at the head of the pack. “It was just super crazy,” said the Kiwi. “Clément tried to move me up, but it was a messy fight, and I didn’t get my positioning quite right. I was getting a lot of wind in the last 700 metres, and when I needed to go, I couldn’t find the space.” After his third and second places at the start of the race, Laurence Pithie had to settle for eighth on Thursday. He also had to give the green jersey away to Mads Pedersen, for four points. “It’s not the result you’re looking for at the start of the day, but tomorrow is another day,” he said. “It will be a lot harder, which is good for me. Today, it was quite easy for me to just follow Pedersen on the climbs. I had good legs, I think I’ll be able to give it a good go tomorrow. I still have a lot of confidence within the team.”
Nearly 3,000 meters of elevation gain will be covered on Friday towards La Colle-sur-Loup. “It might rain in the final,” added Benoît. “It’s going to be tactical, and the breakaway can make it to the end. You have to be one step ahead and not be forced to pull. There is a climb in the final that can suit David, but Laurence can also come over it. The goal is to win a stage by the end of this Paris-Nice.”
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