For his first ever bunch sprint at WorldTour level, on Wednesday, on the first road stage of the Tour Down Under, Paul Penhoët proved rather successful and took a solid fifth place in Tanunda. Perfectly leaded-out in the last kilometre by Miles Scotson, the 21-year-old Frenchman was able to show himself and gain confidence ahead of the next sprints. He also scored the first top-10 of the season for the Groupama-FDJ cycling team.
In the aftermath of the opening prologue won by Alberto Bettiol, the Tour Down Under peloton went up north of Adelaide on Wednesday to compete stage 1, about 150-kilometre long around Tanunda. After about forty kilometres, the riders entered a 36-kilometre circuit to be covered four times. The short and steady climb featuring on the course also did not seem enough to prevent a bunch sprint from happening, and this is why only one man hit the front at the start of the race. “It was quite calm at the start”, confirmed Jussi Veikkanen. “Nans Peters went in the lead on his own, and eventually, the bonus seconds got the peloton excited. It happened already on the first time across the line, but even more so for the second bonus sprint which was located two laps from the finish. There was a real fight and Peters’ breakaway was over. As far as we were concerned, we remained focused around Paul. We just had a heated moment when a crash split the peloton in two just before the second bonus sprint. Several of our riders, in particular Miles and Paul, found themselves behind, but it eventually got back together without too much trouble starting the penultimate lap”. There was therefore only one group left on the road, the bunch, which remained united over the last fifty kilometres, despite the small hills. “The guys were very focused and in a good position around Paul for the final, in particular Laurence and Miles who were his lead-out men”, added Jussi.
“I was too impatient”, Paul Penhoët
“It was a special day,” said Paul. “The speed wasn’t very fast the whole stage, so we knew that the final was going to be very tense. That’s what happened. On the whole last lap, for twenty kilometres, it was extremely tense, and even more so after the last climb since it was only downhill to reach the finish”. After Reuben Thompson and Lorenzo Germani’s work in the last lap, it was then Laurence Pithie and Miles Scotson who guided the French sprinter in the last three kilometres. “It was going really fast, and there was quite a lot of fighting for positions, but we managed to get clear in the last kilometre with Miles”, said Paul. “As for the sprint, I’m a little disappointed, because I was too impatient. Instead of following the wheel of Bauhaus, I launched at the same time as him, and in the end, I never managed to pass him. The guys who stayed in the wheels managed to come with extra-speed in the last fifty meters while I stayed where I was”. Up there in the sprint, the Groupama-FDJ rider eventually grabbed fifth position at the finish, in the wake of winner Phil Bauhaus. “I showed a little impatience, but it still is encouraging for the future”, added the young man. “Paul launched a bit too early, and the last 200 meters were on a slight uphill road”, explained Jussi. “Apart from that, Laurence and Miles did a great job”.
The Australian, who actually celebrated his 29th birthday today, proved even decisive in the last kilometre. “Miles is taking on more and more responsibilities with our sprinters,” confirmed Jussi. “He totally fulfilled his role today, in the race but also in the pre-race, speaking at the briefing to find the right strategy. A good duo is in the process with Laurence. As for Paul, we must not forget that it was his first WorldTour sprint. It’s another level. We will now try to keep the good set-up that we found today and during the criterium with Miles and Laurence, hoping that it will bear fruit thereafter. There are opportunities tomorrow and Saturday. We will continue in that direction. We did a recon of the Victor Harbor’s stage, the weather can have an influence, but a sprint is possible with Paul tomorrow”.
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